# Security Basics: Permissions, Injection and Least Privilege — Coding Agents & AI-Assisted Development

Source: https://www.geekswithgeeks.com/en/coding-agents/v-secure

> Apply the key defences briefly and know where to learn more.

## The agent can do what you can do

An agent running in your terminal has **your permissions**: it can read your files, run your commands and use your credentials. Combine that with text it reads (README files, issues, web pages, tool outputs) that may contain hidden instructions (**prompt injection**) and you have a real risk. Core defences: **least privilege** (run in a container or sandbox, no production credentials, read-only tokens where possible); an **allow / ask / deny** permission policy for commands and paths; **network egress limits**; **never putting secrets in prompts, instruction files or the repository**; treating all file, web and tool content as **data, not instructions**; **human approval** for destructive, external or irreversible actions; and **protected branches with required review and CI**. The separate course on coding-agent guardrails covers these in depth.

## Treat file contents as data

A README or web page can contain instructions aimed at the agent. Do not let them override your policy.

**Quiz:** What does an agent running in your terminal inherit by default?

- [ ] Nothing at all
- [x] Your user permissions, files and credentials
- [ ] Only read access to one file
- [ ] A separate empty machine

*Answer:* Your user permissions, files and credentials. Run agents with the least privilege that lets them do the job.