MCP Gateway Security Features¶

⚠️ Important: MCP Gateway is an OPEN SOURCE PROJECT provided "as-is" with NO OFFICIAL SUPPORT from IBM or its affiliates. Community contributions and best-effort maintenance are provided by project maintainers and contributors.

Current Version: 0.6.0 (Beta) - MCP Gateway is currently in early beta. Security features are continuously evolving toward the 1.0 release.

Comprehensive Security Capabilities¶

Legend: ✅ = Completed | 🚧 = In Progress | 📋 = Planned

🔐 Authentication & Identity Management¶

JWT Token Management - Configurable JWT tokens with expiration, per-user token catalogs, and revocation support (#87, ✅ #425)
Database-Backed User Authentication - Argon2id password hashing replacing basic auth (#544) 🚧
Enterprise SSO Integration - Support for GitHub, Google, LDAP/Active Directory identity providers (#220, #277, #278, #284)
OAuth Integration - Support for OAuth 2.0 for delegated access to MCP servers (✅ #605)
Per-Virtual-Server API Keys - Scoped access control for individual virtual servers (#282)
Enhanced Session Management - Secure session handling for Admin UI (#541) 🚧
CSRF Token Protection - Cross-site request forgery prevention (#543) 🚧

🛡️ Authorization & Access Control¶

Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) - User/Team/Global scopes with private, team, and global catalog separation (#283)
Attribute-Based Access Control (ABAC) - Dynamic authorization based on user attributes, resource properties, and environmental context (#706) 🚧
Policy-as-Code Engine - Rego-based policy enforcement for fine-grained authorization (#271)
IP-Based Access Control - Configurable IP allowlisting for network-level security (#536) 🚧
Endpoint Feature Flags - Selectively enable/disable tools, resources, prompts, servers, gateways (#537) 🚧
Resource-Level Access Control - Virtual server composition with granular tool/resource visibility control
Capability-Based Security - Fine-grained permissions for individual MCP operations (Planned)

🔒 Data Protection & Encryption¶

Cryptographic Request Signing - End-to-end request/response signing and verification (#230)
TLS/mTLS Support - Certificate-based authentication with private CA support (#568) 🚧
Enterprise Secrets Management - HashiCorp Vault integration for secure credential storage (#542) 🚧
Transport Layer Security - Multiple secure protocols (SSE, WebSocket, HTTPS) with configurable TLS termination
End-to-End Encryption - Optional E2E encryption for sensitive data flows (Planned)
Key Management Service (KMS) Integration - Support for AWS KMS, Azure Key Vault, Google Cloud KMS (Planned)
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) - Automatic detection and redaction of sensitive data patterns (Planned)

🚦 Input Validation & Sanitization¶

Gateway-Level Input Validation - Prevent path traversal and injection attacks (#221)
AI Guardrails & PII Masking - Input/output sanitization with sensitive data detection (#229)
Content Size & Type Limits - Security limits for resources and prompts (#538) 🚧
XSS Prevention - DOMPurify integration and content sanitization (✅ #336, #341, ✅ #361)
SQL Injection Prevention - Database-level security constraints (#342) 🚧

🛠️ Plugin & Middleware Framework¶

Pre/Post Request Hooks - Extensible plugin system for custom security policies (✅ #319, ✅ #682)
Plugin CLI Tools - Command-line interface for authoring and packaging plugins (✅ #720)
AI Middleware Integration - Framework for adding LLM-based security capabilities (#313)
Semantic Tool Filtering - Intelligent auto-filtering of tools based on context (#182)
Dynamic Tool Generation - LLM-powered tool creation with security controls (#130)

📊 Monitoring & Audit¶

Comprehensive Audit Logging - Database-backed audit trail for all operations (#535) 🚧
Structured JSON Logging - Correlation IDs for request tracing (#300)
Dual Logging Support - Console and file outputs with rotation policies (✅ #364)
OpenTelemetry Integration - Vendor-agnostic observability with comprehensive metrics (✅ #735)
Phoenix Observability Plugin - Built-in Phoenix integration for ML monitoring (✅ #727)
Prometheus Metrics - Performance and security metrics instrumentation (#218)
Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) Integration - Native support for Splunk, ELK, Datadog (Planned)
Compliance Reporting - Automated reports for SOC2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, GDPR (Planned)
Forensic Analysis Tools - Advanced incident investigation capabilities (Planned)

🚨 Rate Limiting & DDoS Protection¶

Gateway-Level Rate Limiting - Configurable request throttling per client/endpoint (#257)
Tool Execution Limits - Resource controls and execution boundaries (#539) 🚧
Circuit Breakers - Automatic failover for unstable backends (#301)
Smart Retry Mechanisms - Exponential backoff with jitter (#258, ✅ #456)

🔍 Security Testing & Validation¶

SAST/DAST Integration - Semgrep and OWASP ZAP automated testing (#259)
Input Validation Test Suite - Comprehensive security validation tests (✅ #552)
Fuzz Testing - Hypothesis, atheris, schemathesis, RESTler (✅ #256)
Mutation Testing - Test quality validation with mutmut (✅ #280)
Security Scanners - Bandit, grype, nodejsscan integration (#279, ✅ #415, ✅ #499)

🏗️ Infrastructure Security¶

Zero-Trust Architecture - Peer gateway health checks with automatic failover (✅ #424)
Configuration Validation - Schema enforcement with startup security checks (#285, #534) 🚧
Security Headers & Configurable Admin UI Security - Comprehensive security headers with full configurability (✅ #344, ✅ #533)
X-Content-Type-Options: nosniff - Prevents MIME type sniffing attacks (configurable)
X-Frame-Options: DENY - Prevents clickjacking attacks (configurable: DENY/SAMEORIGIN)
X-Download-Options: noopen - Prevents IE download execution (configurable)
Content-Security-Policy - Comprehensive XSS and injection protection (Admin UI compatible)
Strict-Transport-Security - Forces HTTPS connections (configurable max-age & subdomains)
Environment-aware CORS - Automatic origin configuration for dev/production
Secure cookies - HttpOnly, Secure, SameSite attributes for authentication
Static analysis compatibility - Meta tags complement HTTP headers for nodejsscan
15 configuration options - Individual control over all security features
Well-Known URI Handler - security.txt and robots.txt support (✅ #540)
Password Policy Engine - Configurable password and secret policies (#426) 🚧
Graceful Shutdown - SIGTERM-safe rollouts with connection draining (#217)

🔐 Advanced Security Capabilities (Planned)¶

These advanced security features are under consideration for future releases:

MCP Server Verification & Trust¶

MCP Server Attestation - Cryptographic verification of MCP server identity and integrity before connection
Signature Verification - Digital signature validation for MCP server responses and tool executions
MCP Server Code Scanning - Automated security analysis of MCP server source code using multiple linters and security scanners (Bandit, Semgrep, CodeQL) before deployment (#654) 🚧
Binary Analysis - Static and dynamic analysis of compiled MCP server binaries for vulnerabilities

Sandboxed Execution Environments¶

Container Sandboxing - Run MCP servers in isolated containers with strict security policies:
Read-only root filesystems - Prevent runtime modifications
Minimal base images - Using scratch-based or Red Hat UBI9-micro containers
Capability dropping - Remove unnecessary Linux capabilities
Seccomp profiles - Restrict system calls
AppArmor/SELinux policies - Mandatory access controls
Network isolation - Namespace and network policy restrictions
Resource limits - CPU, memory, and I/O constraints
gVisor Integration - User-space kernel for additional isolation layer
Firecracker MicroVMs - Lightweight virtual machines for strong isolation
WebAssembly Sandbox - WASM-based secure execution for untrusted code

Advanced Cryptography & Trust¶

Confidential Computing - Support for encrypted computation in trusted execution environments (TEEs)
Hardware Security Module (HSM) Integration - Hardware-backed key management and cryptographic operations
Homomorphic Encryption - Process encrypted data without decryption for sensitive operations
Zero-Knowledge Proofs - Verify MCP server capabilities without revealing implementation details
Quantum-Resistant Cryptography - Post-quantum cryptographic algorithms for future-proofing

Distributed Security & Governance¶

Blockchain-Based Audit Trail - Immutable distributed ledger for critical security events
Federated Authorization - Cross-domain authorization with SAML, OAuth 2.0, and OpenID Connect
Secure Multi-Party Computation - Enable multiple parties to compute on shared data without revealing inputs

Runtime Protection & Monitoring¶

Dynamic Security Posture Assessment - Real-time security scoring and risk evaluation for connected servers
Behavioral Analytics - ML-based anomaly detection for unusual MCP server patterns
Container Runtime Security - Runtime protection with Falco, AppArmor, SELinux policies
Service Mesh Integration - Native support for Istio, Linkerd for advanced network security
Certificate Pinning - Prevent MITM attacks by validating specific certificates for MCP servers

Multi-Layered Defense Strategy¶

MCP Gateway implements a comprehensive, multi-layered security approach with "defense in depth" and "secure by design" principles:

Security Philosophy¶

Proactive Security: Security measures are built-in from design phase, not added retroactively
Human + Automated: Combines 30+ automated security tools with manual code reviews and threat modeling
Continuous Improvement: Regular updates to security toolchain and practices based on community feedback
Shared Responsibility: Security across all system components - gateway is one layer in your defense strategy

Comprehensive Security Pipeline¶

Pre-commit Security Gates:

Bandit, Semgrep, Dodgy for security scanning
Type checking and code quality enforcement
Run make security-all locally before pushing

Continuous Integration Security:

30+ security scans on every PR
CodeQL semantic analysis
Gitleaks secret detection
Dependency vulnerability scanning
Container security assessment

Runtime Security:

Monitoring and security policies
Anomaly detection
Incident response procedures

Security Compliance & Standards¶

🏆 Currently Implemented (v0.6.0)¶

Authentication: JWT tokens with configurable secrets, Basic Auth support (✅ #663, ✅ #705)
Input Validation: Comprehensive validation across all API endpoints using Pydantic (✅ #339, ✅ #340)
XSS Prevention: Character restrictions, URL scheme validation, JSON depth limits (✅ #409)
Security Scanning: 30+ security tools integrated, 100% Bandit pass rate (✅ #421, ✅ #638, ✅ #590)
Container Hardening:
Ultra-minimal scratch-based runtime - Final image contains only Python runtime and application
Red Hat UBI9-based build - Built from latest patched UBI9 (registry.access.redhat.com/ubi9/ubi:9.6)
Fully patched on every build - Automatic security updates via dnf upgrade -y
Non-root execution - Runs as UID 1001 with OpenShift compatibility
Stripped binaries - All unnecessary symbols removed to reduce attack surface
No package managers in runtime - DNF/YUM/RPM removed from final image
No setuid/setgid binaries - All privileged binaries removed
Pre-compiled Python bytecode - Optimized with -OO, stripping docstrings and assertions
Minimal attack surface - No shell, no development tools, no documentation
Secure Defaults: Admin UI disabled by default, localhost-only binding
Secret Detection: Gitleaks, Dodgy integration preventing credential leaks (✅ #558)
Security Headers: HTTP header passthrough with authorization support (✅ #685)
Authentication Masking: Auth values masked in API responses (✅ #601, ✅ #471, ✅ #472)
Plugin Framework: Comprehensive plugin system with pre/post hooks and CLI tools (✅ #319, ✅ #682, ✅ #720)
OpenTelemetry Observability: Vendor-agnostic observability with Phoenix integration (✅ #735, ✅ #727)
OAuth Integration: OAuth 2.0 authentication support for enhanced access control (✅ #605)
Well-Known URI Security: Configurable handlers for security.txt and robots.txt (✅ #540)
Enhanced Testing: Mutation testing, fuzz testing, and comprehensive security validation (✅ #280, ✅ #256)

🚀 Upcoming Security Enhancements¶

Release 0.6.0 - Completed August 2025 - ✅ Plugin framework with security hooks - ✅ OpenTelemetry observability integration - ✅ OAuth 2.0 authentication support - ✅ Well-known URI security handlers - ✅ Enhanced testing (mutation, fuzz testing)

Release 0.7.0 - September 2025 - Full RBAC implementation - Multi-tenancy support - Correlation ID tracking

Release 0.8.0 - September 2025 - Policy-as-Code engine - Advanced guardrails - DDoS protection

Release 0.9.0 - September 2025 - Marketplace security - Protocol negotiation - Advanced connectivity

Release 1.0.0 - October 2025 - Security audit completion - Production hardening - GA security certification

Production Deployment Security¶

⚠️ Critical Production Requirements¶

The Admin UI is development-only and must NEVER be exposed in production:

Designed for localhost-only access with trusted MCP servers
Single-user administration without access controls
Must be disabled in production: MCPGATEWAY_UI_ENABLED=false

📋 Production Security Checklist¶

Security Best Practices¶

Gateway as One Layer in Defense-in-Depth¶

MCP Gateway should be integrated as one component in a comprehensive security architecture:

Upstream validation: Validate and trust all MCP servers before connection
Gateway validation: Input/output validation at gateway level
Downstream validation: Applications must implement their own security controls
Network isolation: Use network policies to restrict access
Comprehensive monitoring: Log and alert on suspicious activities

Integration Requirements¶

MCP Gateway is not a standalone product. Integrate with: - API gateways/reverse proxies (auth, rate-limiting, routing) - Secrets management systems (Vault, SOPS) - Identity and access management (IAM) platforms - Logging, monitoring, and SIEM platforms - Runtime security and anomaly detection - Custom UI/orchestration layers for multi-tenancy

Developer Security Tools¶

Core Security Commands:

make security-all - Run all security tools
make security-report - Generate security report
make security-fix - Auto-fix issues where possible
make pre-commit - Run pre-commit hooks locally
make lint - 30+ linting and security tools

Individual Security Scanners:

make bandit - Python security vulnerabilities
make semgrep - Semantic code analysis
make dodgy - Hardcoded secrets detection
make gitleaks - Git history secrets scan
make pip-audit - Dependency vulnerabilities
make trivy - Container security scan
make grype-scan - Container vulnerability audit
make osv-scan - Open source vulnerability scan

Multi-Tenancy Considerations¶

MCP Gateway is not yet multi-tenant ready. For multi-user platforms, implement: - User isolation and data segregation - Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) - Resource cleanup and lifecycle management - Tenant-specific validation and limits - Per-user audit logging - Team/organization management

Deploy as a single-tenant component within your larger multi-tenant architecture.

Security Patching Policy¶

⚠️ Disclaimer: All patching is best-effort with no SLAs or commercial support.

Critical/High: Best-effort patches within 1 week (minor version bump)
Medium: Addressed in next release (~2 weeks)
Low: Regular maintenance updates (~2-4 weeks)
No backports: Fixes only applied to latest main branch
No zero-day guarantees: Users must evaluate and mitigate risks

Future Security Roadmap Considerations¶

Beyond the planned features in our roadmap, these additional security capabilities could enhance MCP Gateway:

🛡️ Trust & Verification¶

Distributed Trust Networks - Reputation-based MCP server trust scoring
Continuous Compliance Monitoring - Real-time compliance validation against security frameworks
Supply Chain Security - SLSA framework compliance for build provenance
Code Signing - Verify authenticity of MCP server binaries and updates

🔍 Advanced Threat Detection¶

Threat Intelligence Integration - Real-time threat feeds from MITRE ATT&CK, STIX/TAXII
Deception Technology - Honeypots and canary tokens for early breach detection
User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) - Detect insider threats and compromised accounts
Network Traffic Analysis - Deep packet inspection for protocol anomalies

🏛️ Governance & Compliance¶

Privacy-Preserving Analytics - Differential privacy for usage metrics
Right to be Forgotten - GDPR Article 17 compliance automation
Data Residency Controls - Geographic restrictions for data processing
Consent Management - Granular user consent tracking and enforcement

🔬 Emerging Technologies¶

WebAssembly Sandbox - Secure execution environment for untrusted MCP servers
Decentralized Identity (DID) - Self-sovereign identity for MCP server authentication
Secure Enclaves - iOS/Android secure enclave support for mobile deployments
API Security Posture Management (ASPM) - Continuous API security assessment

Security Contact¶

For security vulnerabilities, report privately via GitHub's security reporting:

Navigate to Security tab
Click "Report a vulnerability"
Fill out the vulnerability details

For more information, see our Security Policy.