AI agents call external_connections to retrieve information from Arkime without modifying anything — typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
This tool retrieves or queries network session data based on destination IP criteria (external vs RFC1918 private ranges). It has no side effects—it reads from the packet capture database to identify sessions matching specific criteria. This is a straightforward data retrieval operation, consistent with other sibling tools like 'search_sessions', 'dns_lookups', and 'geo_summary' on the same Arkime analysis server.
From the tool's definition Tool name 'external_connections' and description 'Find sessions going to external (non-RFC1918) destinations' indicates a query/search operation that retrieves and filters existing network session data without modifying, executing code, or deleting…
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
Find sessions going to external (non-RFC1918) destinations. Useful for. It is categorised as a Read tool in the Arkime MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
Register the Arkime MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for external_connections: 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 Arkime. Nothing to install.
external_connections 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 external_connections 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 external_connections. 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.
external_connections is provided by the Arkime MCP server (swannman/arkime-mcp-server). 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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