telescope_goto · Ascom MCP: Risk & Policy

WHAT IT DOES

What telescope_goto does on Ascom

AI agents invoke telescope_goto to trigger actions in Ascom. 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 telescope_goto needs a policy

The name 'telescope_goto' strongly implies commanding a telescope to slew/move to a target position, which is an external physical operation with real-world effects (moving motorized hardware). This falls under Execute as it triggers an external operation. Severity is high because misuse could physically damage equipment, cause collisions, or point at the sun. Confidence is reduced due to the empty description.

From the tool's definition Tool name 'telescope_goto' on a server that controls telescopes via ASCOM Alpaca; description is empty and uninformative.

Attacks that exploit this kind of access

Recommended rule Ready

Verdict

telescope_goto Rate-limited

telescope_goto 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": {
    "telescope_goto": {
      "limits": [
        {
          "counter": "telescope_goto_rate",
          "window": "minute",
          "max": 10,
          "scope": "grant"
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

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Instant setup, no code required.

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

FAQ

Questions about telescope_goto

What does the telescope_goto tool do? +

telescope_goto. It is categorised as a Execute tool in the Ascom MCP Server, which means it can trigger actions or run processes. Use rate limits and argument validation.

How do I enforce a policy on telescope_goto? +

Register the Ascom MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for telescope_goto: 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 Ascom. Nothing to install.

What risk level is telescope_goto? +

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

Can I rate-limit telescope_goto? +

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

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

telescope_goto is provided by the Ascom MCP server (stellarpunk/mcp-server-ascom). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.