head

THE RISK

Low Risk

Why head needs a policy

This tool reads and displays the first few lines of a file, analogous to the Unix 'head' command. It is purely a read operation with no side effects or data modification.

From the tool's definition Display the beginning of a file

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

POLICY

How to control head

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

policy.json

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

head 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 IT Tools 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 IT Tools MCP Server tools

Execute curl Make HTTP requests to web endpoints. Example: GET request to an API or POST data to a serv Execute test_regex Test regular expressions against text Execute decrypt_ansible_vault Decrypt Ansible Vault encrypted text Execute dig Perform DNS lookup with dig command Execute evaluate_math Safely evaluate mathematical expressions Execute generate_otp Generate Time-based One-Time Password (TOTP) codes Execute hash_bcrypt Generate bcrypt hash or verify password against hash Execute ping Test network connectivity to a host. Example: ping google.com to check if it

All 119 IT Tools 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 head

What does the head tool do? +

Display the beginning of a file. It is categorised as a Read tool in the IT Tools MCP Server MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.

How do I enforce a policy on head? +

Register the IT Tools MCP Server MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for head: 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 IT Tools MCP Server. Nothing to install.

What risk level is head? +

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

Can I rate-limit head? +

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

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

head is provided by the IT Tools MCP Server MCP server (wrenchpilot/it-tools-mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.

Enforce policy on every IT Tools MCP Server tool call.

Start from IT Tools 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 →