Get the complete list of all available academic paper providers. Includes preprint servers (ArXiv, Open Science Framework (OSF) discipline-specific servers). Returns provider IDs for use with search_papers.
AI agents call list_providers to retrieve information from Paperclip without modifying anything — typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
This tool only retrieves and enumerates metadata about available providers. It performs a simple query operation that returns information without modifying any state, executing code, or causing irreversible changes. The output (provider IDs) is used as input for other operations but the tool itself is purely informational and read-only.
From the tool's definition Tool description states it 'Get[s] the complete list of all available academic paper providers' and 'Returns provider IDs'. The verb 'Get' and 'list' indicate a retrieval operation with no side effects.
Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access list_providers gives an agent:
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and Paperclip, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for list_providers:
{
"version": "1",
"default": "deny",
"tools": {
"list_providers": {}
}
}list_providers is read-only, so it stays allowed — but everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.
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Get the complete list of all available academic paper providers. Includes preprint servers (ArXiv, Open Science Framework (OSF) discipline-specific servers). Returns provider IDs for use with search_papers. It is categorised as a Read tool in the Paperclip MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
Register the Paperclip MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for list_providers: 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 Paperclip. Nothing to install.
list_providers is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the list_providers 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.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for list_providers. 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.
list_providers is provided by the Paperclip MCP server (matsjfunke/paperclip). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
Start from Paperclip, add the rest of your stack, and see everything your agents can call. Then put policy on all of it.
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5 Paperclip tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 43,000+ MCP servers.