TOPIC 03 OF 06
Deciding what it can touch
Access, without writing codeYou control an agent's risk mostly by what you connect it to — not by clever instructions. The everyday version of 'least privilege': give it read-only where you can, one account not all of them, and no ability to delete or pay unless it truly needs to. Narrow access caps the worst case no matter what the agent is talked into.
A research assistant needs to read your documents, not send email. A booking assistant needs to book, not read your bank history. Grant the one it needs; withhold the rest, even if the tool offers more.
Broad access 'just in case' is how a small mistake — or a hidden instruction on a web page — becomes a big one. Scope is the safeguard that holds even when the agent misbehaves.
For one agent, name the single narrowest permission that still lets it do the job. Start there; widen only if you must.