What Is an MCP Gateway?
An MCP Gateway is a dedicated layer that gives organizations visibility and control over their Model Context Protocol servers and interactions, functioning as a central security and governance point for MCP traffic specifically. It monitors MCP usage in real time, from sanctioned integrations to unauthorized or unknown "shadow MCP" servers connected without approval, and enforces policy across all of them rather than relying on each integration to secure itself. As MCP adoption grows and agents connect to a widening set of tools and data sources, this becomes the practical way to manage that surface instead of securing each connection individually. It also keeps an audit trail of MCP interactions for review after the fact.
Why It Matters
- Visibility: identifies all MCP servers in use, including unauthorized or unknown ones.
- Enforcement: can block unauthorized actions and enforce policy across MCP traffic in real time.
- Auditability: maintains a record of interactions between MCP servers and clients for review after the fact.
