A third-party MCP server is connected. Will it respect your content exclusions?
Why D is the answer
No, it is not guaranteed, because exclusion covers GitHub's tools
GitHub calls it a guardrail for the tools it controls, and it is not guaranteed to be respected by third-party MCP servers.
In detail
- Exclusion covers GitHub's tools.
- A third-party server is not guaranteed to respect it.
- Review the access of each connected tool.
Use case
An illustrative scenario, not a real incident.
A team connects a third-party MCP server and assumes its exclusions apply. They are not guaranteed there, so it reviews what the server can read.
See it in different ways
flowchart TD A["Content exclusion"] --> B["Applies: supported chat and completions"] A --> C["Applies: code review on GitHub"] A --> D["Not supported: Edit and Agent modes"] A --> E["Not guaranteed: third-party MCP servers"]
stateDiagram-v2 [*] --> Excluded Excluded --> Respected: inline suggestions and chat Excluded --> NotSupported: Edit and Agent modes Excluded --> NotGuaranteed: third-party MCP servers Excluded --> Indirect: IDE semantic information
flowchart TD
Q{"Which tool?"}
Q -->|"GitHub tools"| A0["Exclusion is designed for these"]
Q -->|"Third-party MCP server"| A1["Not guaranteed"]Key point: Exclusion covers GitHub's tools.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. No, because MCP servers cannot read any kind of file at all
- MCP servers can read files, depending on what they do.
- B. Yes, because exclusions are enforced in all connected tools
- Exclusions are not enforced in every connected tool.
- C. Yes, as long as the server is listed in the repository README
- A mention in a README changes nothing.