experimental-ext-tool-annot.../docs/open-questions.md
Sam Morrow 0be45d9b95
Record SEP-1913 feedback as cited open questions; clarify untrusted vs openWorldHint
Enrich the base extension docs so the early review history is preserved rather
than erased by the narrow first cut:

- trust-annotations.mdx: add a normative subsection distinguishing result-level
  untrusted from tool-definition openWorldHint (the SEP-1913 #711 distinction).
- open-questions.md: capture the sensitivity-field shape debate, enforcement-vs-
  advisory risk, per-block byte ranges, taint persistence, and sequence-shape,
  each attributed to the reviewer who raised it; add a Naming (under review)
  section for the contested field/extension names.
- related-work.md: add verified FIDES alternatives (Permissive IFC 2410.03055,
  AirGapAgent 2405.05175, CaMeL 2503.18813) and a schemes-vs-host-architectures
  distinction.
- decisions.md: log the scheme/architecture boundary and the feedback-capture
  decision.

Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>
2026-06-16 10:29:11 +02:00

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6.1 KiB
Markdown

# Open questions
Tracked here rather than in the spec drafts, so the drafts stay non-temporal.
## Cross-cutting
- **Where does the policy-enforcement engine live** across different user
universes (cross-org, cross-domain)? Engines work well within one universe;
cross-domain is the hard case. (IG 2026-05-28.)
- **Cross-domain integrity verification** — is asymmetric crypto for domain
identity in scope for a future extension, or out of scope entirely? CLI tools
remain a persistent gap for enforcing these constraints.
- **`evidenceRef.type` registry** — who curates the list of well-known profile
types, and how do we coordinate with attestation SEPs (e.g. SEP-2787) so
values don't collide?
## trust-annotations
- **Shape of the sensitivity signal.** Is `sensitive: boolean` the right single
coarse signal, or does the narrow cut overcorrect? The SEP-1913 thread rejected
a linear `sensitiveHint: low|medium|high` because sensitivity is set-theoretic,
not a scale ([@JustinCappos](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/issues/711#issuecomment-2967516811):
medical results to a mail MCP *and* a card number to a payment MCP, but neither
crossed). Reviewers then pushed for org-defined vocabularies
([@olaservo](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/issues/711#issuecomment-2968743154),
[@Mossaka](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/issues/711#issuecomment-2971788308))
and a class+regulatory pairing such as `confidential:hipaa`
([@krubenok](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/pull/1913#discussion_r3103485194)).
Against that, [@localden](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/pull/1913#issuecomment-4037623595)
warned a baked-in taxonomy is hard to remove. Open: keep the boolean and let
the [`data-class.v1` scheme](../schemes/data-class.md) carry the taxonomy, or
also expose a structured escape hatch on the wire so regulated flows are
expressible without a scheme?
- **Enforcement vs. advisory.** A self-declared `sensitive: true` from a
poorly-configured or malicious server could create a false sense of security
([@localden](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/pull/1913#issuecomment-4037623595)).
[docs/trust-model.md](./trust-model.md) puts verification in registries; is
that enough without a normative client-side check path?
- Content-block-level vs. result-level attachment — does the draft need a
worked multi-result example before it's implementable? Per-block annotation
with **byte/codepoint ranges** was requested so clients can highlight the
flagged span, not just the whole result
([@connor4312](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/pull/1913#issuecomment-3849207989)).
- `list_changed`: confirmed response-level annotations don't participate; revisit
only if trust vocabulary ever attaches to tool definitions.
## Naming (under review)
These are explicitly unsettled and are being reviewed against the SEP-1913
record before any rename lands:
- **Umbrella name.** The original SEP was "Trust *& Sensitivity* Annotations" —
two axes (integrity *and* confidentiality). `trust-annotations` reads as the
integrity half; does the name hide the `sensitive` (confidentiality) half?
- **`untrusted` vs `openWorldHint`.** Same concept, different layer (result vs.
tool definition). Share a name/vocabulary, or keep them deliberately distinct?
- **`evidenceRef.type` vs `evidenceRef.scheme`.** The repo calls these values
"schemes" (`schemes/`); the selector field is `type`. Align the field name?
- **`evidenceRef` itself.** Its ancestor is [@pshkv](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/pull/1913#issuecomment-4196867926)'s
`decision_ref` / `attestation_ref` / `policy_profile`. Is `evidenceRef` the
clearest umbrella, or should the pointer name the kind of thing it references?
## action-metadata
- Coexistence vs. replacement of legacy `destructiveHint` / `readOnlyHint` /
`idempotentHint` / `openWorldHint`.
- Open strings vs. closed enums for `destination` / `source` / `sensitivity`.
- Does `requiresReview` need a machine-readable *reason* for good client UX?
## ifc-fides (scheme)
- Inline `_meta.ifc` for low-friction adoption vs. always behind `evidenceRef`.
- GitHub Enterprise `internal` repo visibility → `public`/`private` mapping
(audience is the whole org, broader than collaborators; resolved host-side).
- Reader-set resolution is host-side by design — confidentiality join across two
`private` sources needs the intersection, which the opaque wire marker can't
express. Is the 3-step host resolution enough, or do some hosts need a
standard `evidenceRef.ref` shape to locate the originating system?
## Parked (SEP-1913 umbrella)
- **`maliciousActivityHint`** — killed in review on three grounds
([@connor4312](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/pull/1913#issuecomment-3849207989)):
it can't be resolved before execution for dynamic tools; a boolean gives no
UX or ranges; and clients won't trust a server's self-report of its own
maliciousness. If it returns, it is per-`ContentBlock` with spans, driven by
the **host's** own detection, not a server-attested boolean.
- **Taint persistence across the store boundary** — a label must survive
round-tripping through storage: write a card number to a file, read it back,
and the sensitivity label must not silently disappear
([@JustinCappos](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/issues/711#issuecomment-2967516811)).
This is a propagation property no single response annotation can guarantee on
its own; it needs the taxonomy and `evidenceRef` stable first.
- **Session-level propagation rules** — escalation semantics and the
**sequence-shape** gap: "this was call N in a flagged sequence" has no response
annotation surface today ([marras0914](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/pull/1913)).
A candidate `evidenceRef` scheme could carry a sequence assertion; tracked in
[`schemes/README.md`](../schemes/README.md).