getGmailAttachment

THE RISK

Low Risk

Why getGmailAttachment needs a policy

This tool retrieves and returns base64-encoded attachment data from Gmail messages without modifying or deleting anything. It is fundamentally a read operation. Severity is medium rather than low because: (1) attachments may contain sensitive or confidential information; (2) an AI agent could be misled into exfiltrating attachments belonging to others if access controls are not properly validated; (3) the tool…

From the tool's definition Tool name 'getGmailAttachment' and description 'Download an attachment from a Gmail message' indicate a retrieval operation with no modification or deletion of data.

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

POLICY

How to control getGmailAttachment

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

policy.json

{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "getGmailAttachment": {}
  }
}

getGmailAttachment is read-only, so it stays allowed — but everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.

Create a free account and register Google Workspace MCP Server — nothing to install.
Add this policy — paste it, or build it visually.
Point your MCP client (Claude, Cursor, anything) at your gateway URL.

CAP THIS TOOL →

Free to start. No card required.

EXPLORE

Related tools and policies

More Google Workspace MCP Server tools

Destructive clearSpreadsheetRange Clears all values from a specific range in a Google Spreadsheet. Destructive deleteCalendarEvent Delete a calendar event. Destructive deleteComment Deletes a comment from the document. Destructive deleteFile Permanently deletes a file or folder from Google Drive. Destructive deleteGmailFilter Delete a Gmail filter. Destructive deleteGmailLabel Delete a Gmail label. Cannot delete system labels. Destructive deleteRange Deletes content within a specified range (start index inclusive, end index exclusive) from Execute updateScriptContent Updates the content of an Apps Script project. You can add multiple script files (Code.gs,

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Go deeper

The MCP Attack Database → Documented attack patterns against MCP deployments — and the policies that stop them.
Data exfiltration → How read access becomes an exfiltration channel when chained with untrusted content.
MCP token cost → What connecting this server costs in context-window tokens on every request.
Rate Limiting MCP Tool Calls: A Practical Guide →
MCP Security: Why Prompt Guardrails Aren't Enough →

FAQ

Questions about getGmailAttachment

What does the getGmailAttachment tool do? +

Download an attachment from a Gmail message. Returns base64-encoded data. It is categorised as a Read tool in the Google Workspace MCP Server MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.

How do I enforce a policy on getGmailAttachment? +

Register the Google Workspace MCP Server MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for getGmailAttachment: 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 Google Workspace MCP Server. Nothing to install.

What risk level is getGmailAttachment? +

getGmailAttachment is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.

Can I rate-limit getGmailAttachment? +

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

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

getGmailAttachment is provided by the Google Workspace MCP Server MCP server (sputnicyoji/google-workspace-mcp-with-script). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.

Enforce policy on every Google Workspace MCP Server tool call.

Start from Google Workspace MCP Server, add the rest of your stack, and see everything your agents can call. Then put policy on all of it.

CHECK YOUR STACK →