Insecure Authentication
Weak or misconfigured auth in tool APIs allows attackers to impersonate users or escalate privileges.
Definition
Insecure Authentication is an attack on the execution layer of the Model Context Protocol (MCP). It occurs when MCP-connected tools lack proper authentication or expose unauthenticated endpoints. This allows attackers to invoke tools directly or trick the agent into doing so, bypassing access controls and executing actions they are not authorized to perform. The model may unknowingly interact with tools that offer sensitive capabilities without verifying the identity or intent of the caller.
This attack lives in the execution layer of the MCP model, where agents invoke tool functions assuming authentication is enforced.
How MCP Security Helps
Akto detects tools with missing or weak authentication by scanning their exposed endpoints and validating access control behavior. It simulates unauthorized requests to verify if proper checks are enforced before execution. Akto also monitors how agents pass authentication tokens to tools, flagging leaks, over-permissive scopes, or broken trust boundaries that could lead to exploitation.
