blast_submit · Entrez MCP Server MCP: Risk & Policy

WHAT IT DOES

What blast_submit does on Entrez MCP Server

AI agents invoke blast_submit to trigger actions in Entrez MCP Server. What it does depends on the arguments the agent supplies, and its effects often reach beyond the immediate call — builds kicked off, notifications sent, workflows started.

WHY IT NEEDS A POLICY

Why blast_submit needs a policy

This tool submits a job to an external service (NCBI BLAST), causing an external operation to execute. It does not merely read existing data — it initiates a compute job. No data is deleted or money moved, but it does trigger external processing whose effects depend on the submitted sequences and parameters.

From the tool's definition 'Submit sequences for BLAST similarity searching' and 'Returns job ID for result retrieval' — triggers an external computational job on NCBI's servers

Attacks that exploit this kind of access

Recommended rule Ready

Verdict

blast_submit Rate-limited

blast_submit stays usable, but rate-capped — a runaway agent can't fire it dozens of times a minute. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.

View as policy code

policy.json

{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "blast_submit": {
      "limits": [
        {
          "counter": "blast_submit_rate",
          "window": "minute",
          "max": 10,
          "scope": "grant"
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

RATE-LIMIT THIS TOOL →

Instant setup, no code required.

PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway: every tool call is checked against your rule before it reaches Entrez MCP Server, so you can run agents against it safely.

FAQ

Questions about blast_submit

What does the blast_submit tool do? +

Submit sequences for BLAST similarity searching against NCBI databases. Supports all BLAST programs (blastn, blastp, blastx, tblastn, tblastx) with customizable parameters. Returns job ID for result retrieval. It is categorised as a Execute tool in the Entrez MCP Server MCP Server, which means it can trigger actions or run processes. Use rate limits and argument validation.

How do I enforce a policy on blast_submit? +

Register the Entrez MCP Server MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for blast_submit: 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 Entrez MCP Server. Nothing to install.

What risk level is blast_submit? +

blast_submit is a Execute tool with high risk. Execute tools should be rate-limited and have argument validation enabled.

Can I rate-limit blast_submit? +

Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the blast_submit 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 blast_submit completely? +

Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for blast_submit. 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 blast_submit? +

blast_submit is provided by the Entrez MCP Server MCP server (leongxj123/entrez-mcp-server). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.