Access Control for AI Agents
Definition
Access control for AI agents is the set of mechanisms and policies that define which data, tools, and actions an AI agent is permitted to access or execute during operation.
Purpose
The purpose of access control for AI agents is to ensure that agent behavior is constrained to authorized resources and actions, reducing security risks, preventing data leakage, and enabling compliance with regulatory and organizational policies.
Key Characteristics
- Explicit definition of permitted data sources and tools
- Separation of agent capabilities based on roles or permissions
- Enforcement of access rules at runtime rather than only at configuration time
- Integration with identity, authentication, and authorization systems
- Auditability of agent actions and access decisions
Usage in Practice
In practice, access control for AI agents is used to restrict which APIs an agent can call, which documents it can retrieve, what operations it can perform, and under which conditions those actions are allowed, particularly in enterprise and regulated environments.
One implementation of this concept is offered by Kenaz through the Privacy Architecture service.