Each example uses fake data. Start a client through Pentect before you use a handle in that client.

Paste a secret into a prompt

If you paste a credential into a protected client, Pentect checks it before the request leaves your computer:

Use OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWX to test the account.

The provider receives a handle instead of the detected value:

Use OPENAI_API_KEY=<<OPENAI_API_KEY_...>> to test the account.

The original text can remain visible in the local client UI. This protection applies to requests sent through a supported Pentect launch.

Keep an accidental tool result local

An agent may run a command that prints a token, read a sensitive log line, or receive a secret in clipboard text. Pentect checks supported tool output before the next provider request and replaces the value with a handle.

The same rule applies to supported MCP results. Text, JSON fields, page snapshots, and clipboard data can be protected even when the agent did not know that the tool would return a secret.

Create an API key with a browser tool

Suppose an MCP browser opens an admin page and creates a new key. The tool may return it as structured data:

{"apiKey":"sk-ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWX"}

Before the result is sent back to the provider, Pentect changes the value to a handle such as <<APIKEY_...>>. A later local tool can use the known handle without the provider receiving the key.

If the browser returns only a screenshot, Pentect uses local OCR and covers detected sensitive regions. Read Prompts and tool results for the full flow and Files and images for OCR limits.

Read a config file safely

Ask a protected Codex or Claude session to read .env. The provider receives the key names and handles:

DATABASE_URL=<<DATABASE_URL_4ce8a3b0a6f64e12>>
PAYMENTS_TOKEN=<<PAYMENTS_TOKEN_9ef3a9b7b1cf0210>>

You can check the same result without an agent:

macOS / Linux

cat .env | pentect mask

Windows

Get-Content .env -Raw | pentect mask

Let a local command use a handle

pentect exec restores handles before the command runs, then masks its output:

pentect exec 'curl -H "Authorization: Bearer <<API_TOKEN_...>>" https://api.example.test/me'

Prefer this to pentect resolve when a command can accept the handle directly. resolve writes the real value to a file or standard output.

Keep your normal client command

Let Pentect add the shell function after showing it to you:

pentect codex --set-default
pentect claude --set-default

Now commands such as codex exec --full-auto and claude --model sonnet use Pentect without changing their normal arguments.

Undo the change with pentect codex --unset-default or pentect claude --unset-default.

Use a local model or gateway

Point one launch at a gateway that supports the client API:

pentect codex --upstream http://127.0.0.1:8080/openai/v1
pentect claude --upstream http://127.0.0.1:8080/anthropic

Codex needs OpenAI Responses. Claude needs Anthropic Messages. A Chat Completions endpoint alone is not enough. See Custom upstreams.

Apply a project policy

Create .pentect/config.toml in the project:

[handles]
scope = "project"

[agent]
required = true

This gives the project its own handle identity and requires supported agents to start through Pentect. A project cannot turn off the user's unknown-format protection.

Add one custom detector

Create plugins/company/plugin.toml:

schema = "pentect.plugin.v1"
name = "company-ids"
description = "Protect internal case IDs."

[[detector]]
label = "CASE_ID"
pattern = '''\bCASE-[0-9]{8}\b'''
category = "identifier"
confidence = "high"

Try it for one command:

echo "CASE-12345678" | pentect mask --plugins ./plugins/company

Continue with Build a plugin when you need Wasm, settings, network access, or request policy.