Paste image from clipboard, automatically detect TIFF/PNG/JPEG formats, and always return the image as a PNG base64-encoded string. Returns an empty string if there is no image in the clipboard.
AI agents call paste_image_from_clipboard to retrieve information from Macos Clipboard without modifying anything — typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
This tool reads data from the clipboard and returns it as a base64-encoded PNG string. It has no side effects — it does not write, modify, or delete any data. It is a read operation with low blast radius since it only accesses whatever image is currently in the clipboard.
From the tool's definition 'Paste image from clipboard' and 'return the image as a PNG base64-encoded string' — the tool reads/retrieves clipboard contents and returns data without modifying anything.
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
Paste image from clipboard, automatically detect TIFF/PNG/JPEG formats, and always return the image as a PNG base64-encoded string. Returns an empty string if there is no image in the clipboard. It is categorised as a Read tool in the Macos Clipboard MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
Register the Macos Clipboard MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for paste_image_from_clipboard: 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 Macos Clipboard. Nothing to install.
paste_image_from_clipboard 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 paste_image_from_clipboard 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 paste_image_from_clipboard. 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.
paste_image_from_clipboard is provided by the Macos Clipboard MCP server (xiaoquisme/macos-cliboard-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.
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