get-work-items

THE RISK

Low Risk

Why get-work-items needs a policy

This tool queries and retrieves work item data from Azure DevOps without creating, modifying, deleting, or executing any operations. It is a read-only data retrieval function, consistent with similar tools on the server like 'get-builds', 'get-pipeline-status', 'get-pull-requests', and 'get-repositories'.

From the tool's definition Tool name 'get-work-items' and description 'Get work items from Azure DevOps' indicate a retrieval operation with no side effects.

Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access get-work-items gives an agent:

POLICY

How to control get-work-items

PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and DevOps Enhanced MCP, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for get-work-items:

policy.json

{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "get-work-items": {}
  }
}

get-work-items 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 DevOps Enhanced MCP — 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 DevOps Enhanced MCP tools

Execute trigger-pipeline Trigger a build pipeline in Azure DevOps Write add-work-item-comment Add a comment to an existing work item in Azure DevOps Write create-work-item Create a new work item in Azure DevOps Write update-work-item Update an existing work item in Azure DevOps Read get-builds Get build definitions and recent builds Read get-current-context Get current Azure DevOps context based on directory Read get-pipeline-status Get status of a specific build or pipeline Read get-pull-requests Get pull requests from Azure DevOps repository

All 10 DevOps Enhanced MCP 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 get-work-items

What does the get-work-items tool do? +

Get work items from Azure DevOps. It is categorised as a Read tool in the DevOps Enhanced MCP MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.

How do I enforce a policy on get-work-items? +

Register the DevOps Enhanced MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for get-work-items: 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 DevOps Enhanced MCP. Nothing to install.

What risk level is get-work-items? +

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

Can I rate-limit get-work-items? +

Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the get-work-items 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 get-work-items completely? +

Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for get-work-items. 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 get-work-items? +

get-work-items is provided by the DevOps Enhanced MCP server (wangkanai/devops-mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.

Enforce policy on every DevOps Enhanced MCP tool call.

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

CHECK YOUR STACK →