search_trending

THE RISK

Low Risk

Why search_trending needs a policy

This tool performs data retrieval and analysis of trending topics—a read-only operation with no side effects. It does not create, modify, delete, execute code, or involve financial transactions. The blast radius of misuse is minimal as it only returns observational data about public content.

From the tool's definition Tool name 'search_trending' and description 'Find current trending topics and keywords from top HackerNews posts' indicate a query-only operation that retrieves and analyzes publicly available data without modification.

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

POLICY

How to control search_trending

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

policy.json

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

search_trending 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 HackerNews 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 HackerNews MCP Server tools

Read get_post Get comprehensive details about a HackerNews post including metadata and comments Read search_comments Analyze the comment tree of a post for engagement patterns and statistics Read search_posts Search and filter HackerNews posts by keywords, author, score, and date range Read search_user Get a HackerNews user Other test_tool A simple test tool

All 6 HackerNews MCP Server tools →

Read tools on other servers

M-Team MCP Server get_torrent_detail YouTube MCP Server search_channel Android Forensics ADB MCP Server parse_browser_history 0xarchive web3_challenge

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 search_trending

What does the search_trending tool do? +

Find current trending topics and keywords from top HackerNews posts. It is categorised as a Read tool in the HackerNews MCP Server MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.

How do I enforce a policy on search_trending? +

Register the HackerNews MCP Server MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for search_trending: 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 HackerNews MCP Server. Nothing to install.

What risk level is search_trending? +

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

Can I rate-limit search_trending? +

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

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

search_trending is provided by the HackerNews MCP Server MCP server (traves-theberge/hackernews-mcp-typescript). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.

Enforce policy on every HackerNews MCP Server tool call.

Start from HackerNews 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 →