Search for videos on a channel by keyword.
AI agents call search_channel_videos to retrieve information from YouTube MCP Server without modifying anything — typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
This is a read-only retrieval tool analogous to search or list operations. It queries channel videos by keyword and returns results, with no side effects. No data is created, modified, deleted, or financial transactions occur. The severity is low because misuse would only expose information already accessible to the channel owner via YouTube's own interface.
From the tool's definition The tool name 'search_channel_videos' and description indicate it 'Search[es] for videos on a channel by keyword'—a query operation that retrieves data without modification, deletion, or code execution.
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
Search for videos on a channel by keyword. It is categorised as a Read tool in the YouTube MCP Server MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
Register the YouTube MCP Server MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for search_channel_videos: 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 YouTube MCP Server. Nothing to install.
search_channel_videos 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 search_channel_videos 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 search_channel_videos. 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.
search_channel_videos is provided by the YouTube MCP Server MCP server (sulavkharel/youtube-mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
Every MCP server has a record like this.
Type a name, get the same breakdown: verified identity, auth posture, risk grade, capabilities, recommended policy.
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