TypeScript / JavaScript: guard customer data with CAIN

1 Get a key

Give each agent its own key in production (console → Agent keys): decisions, trust history and revocation are then per agent.

2 Install

Copy cain.ts from the TypeScript page into your project and set CAIN_API_KEY.

3 Put CAIN in front of any async function

There is no npm package yet: copy the helper from the TypeScript page (Node 18+, Deno, Bun, edge runtimes, no dependencies). guard() throws unless the verdict is ALLOWED and not blocked; a timeout or error is a refusal.

import { guard } from "./cain";   // the ~30-line helper from /docs/sdk-typescript

export const exportCustomers = guard('export_customers', async (args: { segment: string; fields: string[] }) => {
  // your existing code, unchanged
}, 'customer-data-agent');

// throws CainRefused unless CAIN answers ALLOWED for these exact arguments

On a refusal the agent gets a CainRefused error carrying the decision. The tool body never runs: not on a refusal, not on a hold, not when CAIN cannot be reached.

4 See what CAIN decides for this exact call

This is the request the integration sends when the model calls export_customers with these arguments. record: false evaluates it without writing an evidence record. A new agent has no trust history, so expect REQUIRE_APPROVAL at first; destinations outside your egress allowlist are refused by the egress stage.

5 Write the rule, and test it before you save it

An export that includes social security numbers is refused; other fields export. On a list, contains means one of the items equals the value.

The panel sends the draft rule to the rule tester: it says which rule would decide the call and saves nothing. Swap in the safe arguments below to see it pass through. matches is a case-insensitive glob (*, ?), not a regular expression; conditions on one rule must all hold; the first matching rule by priority wins.

Safe arguments: {"segment": "all", "fields": ["email", "plan"]}

When it does what you want, save it from the console or with POST /fabric/tool-rules:

curl -sS -X POST https://cainstudio.online/fabric/tool-rules \
  -H "X-API-Key: $CAIN_API_KEY" -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"name": "customer-data-guard", "effect": "deny", "priority": 10, "match_path": "/tools/export_customers", "conditions": [{"field": "fields", "op": "contains", "value": "ssn"}]}'

6 Handle the calls that wait for a person

A held call is not executed. It appears in the approval queue with its exact arguments; an approval lets that one call run once. Adapters can wait instead of returning: wait_for_approval=120.

7 Check it before you ship

cainstudio redteam --agent customer-data-agent   # dry-runs dangerous calls; exit 2 if any would run
cainstudio decisions                 # what was decided, and why
cainstudio explain <decision_id>

Every recorded decision is signed; Cain().verify(decision) checks its quorum certificate on your machine (Python SDK).