{"id":"https://openalex.org/W7161044627","doi":"https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2605.11003","title":"The Authorization-Execution Gap Is a Major Safety and Security Problem in Open-World Agents","display_name":"The Authorization-Execution Gap Is a Major Safety and Security Problem in Open-World Agents","publication_year":2026,"publication_date":"2026-05-10","ids":{"openalex":"https://openalex.org/W7161044627","doi":"https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2605.11003"},"language":null,"primary_location":{"id":"doi:10.48550/arxiv.2605.11003","is_oa":true,"landing_page_url":"https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2605.11003","pdf_url":null,"source":{"id":"https://openalex.org/S4306400194","display_name":"arXiv (Cornell University)","issn_l":"2331-8422","issn":["2331-8422"],"is_oa":true,"is_in_doaj":false,"is_core":false,"host_organization":"https://openalex.org/I205783295","host_organization_name":"Cornell University","host_organization_lineage":["https://openalex.org/I205783295"],"host_organization_lineage_names":[],"type":"repository"},"license":null,"license_id":null,"version":null,"is_accepted":false,"is_published":false,"raw_source_name":null,"raw_type":"Preprint"},"type":"preprint","indexed_in":["datacite"],"open_access":{"is_oa":true,"oa_status":"green","oa_url":"https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2605.11003","any_repository_has_fulltext":true},"authorships":[{"author_position":"first","author":{"id":"https://openalex.org/A5068027800","display_name":"Baoyuan Wu","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2183-5990"},"institutions":[],"countries":[],"is_corresponding":false,"raw_author_name":"Wu, Baoyuan","raw_affiliation_strings":[],"raw_orcid":null,"affiliations":[]},{"author_position":"middle","author":{"id":"https://openalex.org/A5136005072","display_name":"Qingshan Liu","orcid":null},"institutions":[],"countries":[],"is_corresponding":false,"raw_author_name":"Liu, Qingshan","raw_affiliation_strings":[],"raw_orcid":null,"affiliations":[]},{"author_position":"middle","author":{"id":"https://openalex.org/A5091670711","display_name":"Adel Bibi","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6169-3918"},"institutions":[],"countries":[],"is_corresponding":false,"raw_author_name":"Bibi, Adel","raw_affiliation_strings":[],"raw_orcid":null,"affiliations":[]},{"author_position":"middle","author":{"id":"https://openalex.org/A5136064411","display_name":"Irwin King","orcid":null},"institutions":[],"countries":[],"is_corresponding":false,"raw_author_name":"King, Irwin","raw_affiliation_strings":[],"raw_orcid":null,"affiliations":[]},{"author_position":"last","author":{"id":"https://openalex.org/A5126639890","display_name":"Siwei Lyu","orcid":null},"institutions":[],"countries":[],"is_corresponding":false,"raw_author_name":"Lyu, Siwei","raw_affiliation_strings":[],"raw_orcid":null,"affiliations":[]}],"institutions":[],"countries_distinct_count":0,"institutions_distinct_count":0,"corresponding_author_ids":[],"corresponding_institution_ids":[],"apc_list":null,"apc_paid":null,"fwci":null,"has_fulltext":false,"cited_by_count":0,"citation_normalized_percentile":null,"cited_by_percentile_year":null,"biblio":{"volume":null,"issue":null,"first_page":null,"last_page":null},"is_retracted":false,"is_paratext":false,"is_xpac":false,"primary_topic":{"id":"https://openalex.org/T10927","display_name":"Access Control and Trust","score":0.7447999715805054,"subfield":{"id":"https://openalex.org/subfields/3312","display_name":"Sociology and Political Science"},"field":{"id":"https://openalex.org/fields/33","display_name":"Social Sciences"},"domain":{"id":"https://openalex.org/domains/2","display_name":"Social Sciences"}},"topics":[{"id":"https://openalex.org/T10927","display_name":"Access Control and Trust","score":0.7447999715805054,"subfield":{"id":"https://openalex.org/subfields/3312","display_name":"Sociology and Political Science"},"field":{"id":"https://openalex.org/fields/33","display_name":"Social Sciences"},"domain":{"id":"https://openalex.org/domains/2","display_name":"Social Sciences"}},{"id":"https://openalex.org/T12203","display_name":"Mobile Agent-Based Network Management","score":0.04899999871850014,"subfield":{"id":"https://openalex.org/subfields/1705","display_name":"Computer Networks and Communications"},"field":{"id":"https://openalex.org/fields/17","display_name":"Computer Science"},"domain":{"id":"https://openalex.org/domains/3","display_name":"Physical Sciences"}},{"id":"https://openalex.org/T11424","display_name":"Security and Verification in Computing","score":0.0471000000834465,"subfield":{"id":"https://openalex.org/subfields/1702","display_name":"Artificial Intelligence"},"field":{"id":"https://openalex.org/fields/17","display_name":"Computer Science"},"domain":{"id":"https://openalex.org/domains/3","display_name":"Physical Sciences"}}],"keywords":[{"id":"https://openalex.org/keywords/harm","display_name":"Harm","score":0.6140999794006348},{"id":"https://openalex.org/keywords/task","display_name":"Task (project management)","score":0.6039999723434448},{"id":"https://openalex.org/keywords/principal","display_name":"Principal (computer security)","score":0.597000002861023},{"id":"https://openalex.org/keywords/authorization","display_name":"Authorization","score":0.5878999829292297},{"id":"https://openalex.org/keywords/divergence","display_name":"Divergence (linguistics)","score":0.42890000343322754},{"id":"https://openalex.org/keywords/position","display_name":"Position (finance)","score":0.34279999136924744}],"concepts":[{"id":"https://openalex.org/C38652104","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3510521","display_name":"Computer security","level":1,"score":0.6998000144958496},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C2777363581","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q15098235","display_name":"Harm","level":2,"score":0.6140999794006348},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C2780451532","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q759676","display_name":"Task (project management)","level":2,"score":0.6039999723434448},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C144559511","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2986279","display_name":"Principal (computer security)","level":2,"score":0.597000002861023},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C108759981","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q788590","display_name":"Authorization","level":2,"score":0.5878999829292297},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C112930515","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4389547","display_name":"Risk analysis (engineering)","level":1,"score":0.5325000286102295},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C41008148","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q21198","display_name":"Computer science","level":0,"score":0.526199996471405},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C207390915","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1230525","display_name":"Divergence (linguistics)","level":2,"score":0.42890000343322754},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C198082294","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3399648","display_name":"Position (finance)","level":2,"score":0.34279999136924744},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C144133560","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4830453","display_name":"Business","level":0,"score":0.33889999985694885},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C26517878","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q228039","display_name":"Key (lock)","level":2,"score":0.319599986076355},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C95713431","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q631425","display_name":"Vulnerability (computing)","level":2,"score":0.28780001401901245},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C78780964","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7233193","display_name":"Position paper","level":2,"score":0.2847000062465668},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C2776654903","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2601463","display_name":"SAFER","level":2,"score":0.2761000096797943},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C190253527","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q295354","display_name":"Law and economics","level":1,"score":0.2718999981880188},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C2777834853","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q96776939","display_name":"Liability","level":2,"score":0.2718000113964081},{"id":"https://openalex.org/C2780522230","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1140419","display_name":"Ambiguity","level":2,"score":0.2624000012874603}],"mesh":[],"locations_count":1,"locations":[{"id":"doi:10.48550/arxiv.2605.11003","is_oa":true,"landing_page_url":"https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2605.11003","pdf_url":null,"source":{"id":"https://openalex.org/S4306400194","display_name":"arXiv (Cornell University)","issn_l":"2331-8422","issn":["2331-8422"],"is_oa":true,"is_in_doaj":false,"is_core":false,"host_organization":"https://openalex.org/I205783295","host_organization_name":"Cornell University","host_organization_lineage":["https://openalex.org/I205783295"],"host_organization_lineage_names":[],"type":"repository"},"license":null,"license_id":null,"version":null,"is_accepted":false,"is_published":null,"raw_source_name":null,"raw_type":"Preprint"}],"best_oa_location":{"id":"doi:10.48550/arxiv.2605.11003","is_oa":true,"landing_page_url":"https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2605.11003","pdf_url":null,"source":{"id":"https://openalex.org/S4306400194","display_name":"arXiv (Cornell University)","issn_l":"2331-8422","issn":["2331-8422"],"is_oa":true,"is_in_doaj":false,"is_core":false,"host_organization":"https://openalex.org/I205783295","host_organization_name":"Cornell University","host_organization_lineage":["https://openalex.org/I205783295"],"host_organization_lineage_names":[],"type":"repository"},"license":null,"license_id":null,"version":null,"is_accepted":false,"is_published":false,"raw_source_name":null,"raw_type":"Preprint"},"sustainable_development_goals":[{"score":0.8077637553215027,"display_name":"Peace, Justice and strong institutions","id":"https://metadata.un.org/sdg/16"}],"awards":[],"funders":[],"has_content":{"grobid_xml":false,"pdf":false},"content_urls":null,"referenced_works_count":0,"referenced_works":[],"related_works":[],"abstract_inverted_index":{"This":[0],"position":[1],"paper":[2],"argues":[3],"that":[4,59,68,162],"the":[5,22,102,107,112,127,159],"Authorization-Execution":[6],"Gap":[7],"(AEG)":[8],"is":[9,21,60,161],"a":[10,26,104,193],"major":[11],"safety":[12,116],"and":[13,31,47,86,117,124,190],"security":[14,118],"problem":[15],"in":[16],"open-world":[17,34,165],"agents.":[18],"The":[19,89],"AEG":[20,131,186],"divergence":[23,55],"between":[24],"what":[25,32],"principal":[27],"intends":[28],"to":[29,64,76,192],"authorize":[30],"an":[33],"agent":[35,71],"ultimately":[36],"executes.":[37],"Because":[38,126],"such":[39,173],"agents":[40,166],"act":[41],"autonomously":[42],"across":[43],"tools,":[44],"persistent":[45],"state,":[46],"multi-agent":[48],"handoffs,":[49],"even":[50],"small":[51],"instances":[52],"of":[53,80,97,130],"authorization":[54,140],"can":[56,73],"cause":[57],"harm":[58],"difficult":[61],"or":[62,154,177],"impossible":[63],"undo.":[65],"We":[66],"argue":[67],"many":[69],"observed":[70,91],"failures":[72],"be":[74],"traced":[75],"three":[77],"structural":[78,128,194],"sources":[79,129],"AEG:":[81],"delegation-level":[82],"incompleteness,":[83],"channel-level":[84],"corruption,":[85],"composition-level":[87],"fragmentation.":[88],"same":[90],"failure":[92],"may":[93],"arise":[94,132],"from":[95],"any":[96],"these":[98],"sources.":[99],"Without":[100],"identifying":[101],"source,":[103],"defense":[105],"targeting":[106],"symptom":[108],"alone":[109],"cannot":[110],"address":[111],"underlying":[113],"cause.":[114],"Agent":[115],"should":[119,167],"therefore":[120],"emphasize":[121],"source-oriented":[122],"diagnosis":[123],"defense.":[125],"dynamically":[133],"during":[134,144,196],"execution,":[135,145],"this":[136],"approach":[137],"necessarily":[138],"requires":[139],"integrity":[141],"checks":[142],"applied":[143],"rather":[146],"than":[147],"relying":[148],"solely":[149],"on":[150,164],"one-shot":[151],"upfront":[152],"filtering":[153],"post-hoc":[155],"audit.":[156],"For":[157],"NeurIPS,":[158],"implication":[160],"papers":[163],"report":[168],"not":[169],"only":[170],"outcome-level":[171],"metrics":[172],"as":[174],"task":[175],"success":[176],"attack":[178],"resistance,":[179],"but":[180],"also":[181],"process-level":[182],"evidence":[183],"showing":[184],"where":[185],"was":[187],"detected,":[188],"constrained,":[189],"attributed":[191],"source":[195],"execution.":[197]},"counts_by_year":[],"updated_date":"2026-07-28T07:46:37.118299","created_date":"2026-05-14T00:00:00"}