Critical Risk →

pay_request

Pay for a 402-protected resource. Sends USDC payment via x402 protocol and returns the resource content. The agent automatically handles the 402 handshake.

How to control pay_request ↓

What pay_request does on Mcp Ap2

AI agents use pay_request to commit financial operations through Mcp Ap2 — usually the final step of a payment, billing, or trading workflow. A call moves real money.

Critical Risk

Why pay_request needs a policy

This tool directly commits financial obligations by sending USDC payments. It meets the Financial category definition: 'moves money or commits financial obligations'. The automatic handling of the 402 handshake means an agent could inadvertently trigger payments without explicit verification.

From the tool's definition Tool description states 'Sends USDC payment via x402 protocol' and 'Pay for a 402-protected resource'. The tool name is 'pay_request' and explicitly moves cryptocurrency (USDC) as part of its operation.

Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access pay_request gives an agent:

How to control pay_request

PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and Mcp Ap2, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for pay_request:

policy.json
{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "pay_request": {
      "deny_if": [
        {
          "conditions": [],
          "on_deny": "Requires human approval."
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

Any call to pay_request is blocked until a human approves it. The rest of the server keeps working.

  1. Create a free account and register Mcp Ap2 — nothing to install.
  2. Add this policy — paste it, or build it visually.
  3. Point your MCP client (Claude, Cursor, anything) at your gateway URL.
GATE THIS TOOL →

Free to start. No card required.

Related tools and policies

Go deeper

Questions about pay_request

What does the pay_request tool do? +

Pay for a 402-protected resource. Sends USDC payment via x402 protocol and returns the resource content. The agent automatically handles the 402 handshake. It is categorised as a Financial tool in the Mcp Ap2 MCP Server, which means it involves financial transactions. Block by default and require explicit approval.

How do I enforce a policy on pay_request? +

Register the Mcp Ap2 MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for pay_request: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Mcp Ap2. Nothing to install.

What risk level is pay_request? +

pay_request is a Financial tool with critical risk. Critical-risk tools should be blocked by default and only enabled with explicit human approval.

Can I rate-limit pay_request? +

Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the pay_request rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.

How do I block pay_request completely? +

Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for pay_request. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.

What MCP server provides pay_request? +

pay_request is provided by the Mcp Ap2 MCP server (@codespar/mcp-ap2). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.

Enforce policy on every Mcp Ap2 tool call.

Start from Mcp Ap2, add the rest of your stack, and see everything your agents can call. Then put policy on all of it.

Free to start. No card required.

1300 Mcp Ap2 tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 43,000+ MCP servers.

// GET IN TOUCH

Have a question or want to learn more? Send us a message.

Message sent.

We'll get back to you soon.