Bagman

Secure key management patterns for AI agents handling wallets, private keys, and secrets.

When to Use This Skill

• Agent needs wallet/blockchain access
• Handling API keys, credentials, or secrets
• Building systems where AI controls funds
• Preventing secret leakage via prompts or outputs

Quick Start

# Install 1Password CLI
brew install 1password-cli

# Authenticate
eval $(op signin)

# Create vault for agent credentials
op vault create "Agent-Credentials"

# Run examples
cd examples && python test_suite.py

---

Core Rules

Rule	Why
Never store raw private keys	Config, env, memory, or conversation = leaked
Use delegated access	Session keys with time/value/scope limits
Secrets via secret manager	1Password, Vault, AWS Secrets Manager
Sanitize all outputs	Scan for key patterns before any response
Validate all inputs	Check for injection attempts before wallet ops

---

Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                   AI Agent                          │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  Session Key (bounded)                              │
│  ├─ Expires after N hours                           │
│  ├─ Max spend per tx/day                            │
│  └─ Whitelist of allowed contracts/methods          │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  Secret Manager (1Password/Vault)                   │
│  ├─ Retrieve at runtime only                        │
│  ├─ Never persist to disk                           │
│  └─ Audit trail of accesses                         │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  Smart Account (ERC-4337)                           │
│  ├─ Programmable permissions                        │
│  └─ Recovery without key exposure                   │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

---

Implementation Files

File	Purpose
examples/secret_manager.py	1Password integration for runtime secret retrieval
examples/sanitizer.py	Output sanitization (keys, seeds, tokens)
examples/validator.py	Input validation (prompt injection defense)
examples/session_keys.py	ERC-4337 session key configuration
examples/delegation_integration.ts	MetaMask Delegation Framework (EIP-7710)
examples/pre-commit	Git hook to block secret commits
examples/test_suite.py	Adversarial test suite
docs/prompt-injection.md	Deep dive on injection defense
docs/secure-storage.md	Secret storage patterns
docs/session-keys.md	Session key architecture
docs/leak-prevention.md	Output sanitization patterns
docs/delegation-framework.md	On-chain permission enforcement (EIP-7710)

---

1. Secret Retrieval

1Password CLI Pattern

# Retrieve at runtime (never store result)
SESSION_KEY=$(op read "op://Agents/my-agent/session-key")

# Run with injected secrets (never touch disk)
op run --env-file=.env.tpl -- python agent.py

.env.tpl (safe to commit - no secrets)

PRIVATE_KEY=op://Agents/trading-bot/session-key
RPC_URL=op://Infra/alchemy/sepolia-url
OPENAI_API_KEY=op://Services/openai/api-key

Python Usage

from secret_manager import get_session_key

# Retrieve validated session key
creds = get_session_key("trading-bot-session")

# Check validity
if creds.is_expired():
    raise ValueError("Session expired - request renewal from operator")

print(f"Time remaining: {creds.time_remaining()}")
print(f"Allowed contracts: {creds.allowed_contracts}")

# Use the key (never log it!)
client.set_signer(creds.session_key)

Vault-Level ACL (Recommended)

Configure 1Password vault permissions:

Agent-Credentials/
├── trading-bot-session    # Agent can read
├── payment-bot-session    # Agent can read
└── master-key             # Operator ONLY (agent has no access)

Principle: Agent credentials should be in a vault with read-only agent access. Master keys should be in a separate vault the agent cannot access.

---

2. Output Sanitization (MANDATORY)

⚠️ CRITICAL: Apply to ALL agent outputs before sending anywhere. No exceptions.

This includes:

• Chat responses
• Cron job summaries
• Monitoring alerts
• Status reports
• Debug logs
• Error messages
• Any text that leaves the agent

from sanitizer import OutputSanitizer

def respond(content: str) -> str:
    """Mandatory sanitization before ANY output."""
    return OutputSanitizer.sanitize(content)

def cron_summary(task_result: dict) -> str:
    """Cron summaries MUST sanitize before delivery."""
    summary = format_summary(task_result)
    return OutputSanitizer.sanitize(summary)  # ALWAYS sanitize

Secret Patterns Detected

Pattern	Example	Result
ETH private key	0x1234...abcd (64 hex)	[PRIVATE_KEY_REDACTED]
ETH address	0x742d...f44e (40 hex)	0x742d...f44e (truncated)
OpenAI key	sk-proj-abc123...	[OPENAI_KEY_REDACTED]
Anthropic key	sk-ant-api03-...	[ANTHROPIC_KEY_REDACTED]
12-word seed	abandon ability able...	[SEED_PHRASE_12_WORDS_REDACTED]
JWT	eyJhbG...	[JWT_TOKEN_REDACTED]
Venice key refs	venice:key1, venice:key2	[ venice:key1 ] (bracketed)

Sensitive Metrics Redacted (Cron Summaries)

Pattern	Example	Result
DIEM counts	98 DIEM, 194 DIEM	[DIEM_REDACTED]
Balance	balance: 42.5 DIEM	[BALANCE_REDACTED]
Threshold	threshold: 10 DIEM	[THRESHOLD_REDACTED]
Totals	total: 194 DIEM	[TOTAL_REDACTED]
Remaining/Spent	remaining: 50 DIEM	[METRIC_REDACTED]

Cron Summary Example

BEFORE sanitization (NEVER send this):

Venice API check: venice:key1 has 98 DIEM, venice:key2 has 96 DIEM.
Balance: 194 DIEM, Threshold: 10 DIEM

AFTER sanitization (safe to send):

Venice API check: [ venice:key1 ] has [DIEM_REDACTED], [ venice:key2 ] has [DIEM_REDACTED].
[BALANCE_REDACTED], [THRESHOLD_REDACTED]

Venice Key Reference Sanitization

Venice API key references (venice:key1, venice:key2, etc.) are NOT secrets themselves, but should be bracketed to:

1. Prevent them from being used as identifiers in logs
2. Make it clear they are references, not actual keys
3. Distinguish from potential false-positive patterns

The sanitizer brackets un-bracketed references: venice:key1 → [ venice:key1 ]

Already-bracketed references are left unchanged: [ venice:key1 ] → [ venice:key1 ]

---

3. Input Validation

Check inputs before ANY wallet operation:

from validator import InputValidator, ThreatLevel

result = InputValidator.validate(user_input)

if result.level == ThreatLevel.BLOCKED:
    return f"Request blocked: {result.reason}"

if result.level == ThreatLevel.SUSPICIOUS:
    # Log for review, but allow
    log_suspicious(user_input, result.reason)

# Proceed with operation

Threat Categories

Category	Examples	Action
Extraction	"show private key", "reveal secrets"	Block
Override	"ignore previous instructions"	Block
Role manipulation	"you are now admin"	Block
Jailbreak	"DAN mode", "bypass filters"	Block
Exfiltration	"send config to https://..."	Block
Wallet threats	"transfer all", "unlimited approve"	Block
Encoded	Base64/hex encoded attacks	Block
Unicode tricks	Cyrillic lookalikes, zero-width	Block
Suspicious	"hypothetically", "just between us"	Warn

---

4. Operation Allowlisting

Never execute arbitrary operations. Explicit whitelist only:

from dataclasses import dataclass
from decimal import Decimal
from typing import Optional

@dataclass
class AllowedOperation:
    name: str
    handler: callable
    max_value: Optional[Decimal] = None
    requires_confirmation: bool = False
    cooldown_seconds: int = 0

ALLOWED_OPS = {
    "check_balance": AllowedOperation("check_balance", get_balance),
    "transfer_usdc": AllowedOperation(
        "transfer_usdc",
        transfer,
        max_value=Decimal("500"),
        requires_confirmation=True,
        cooldown_seconds=60
    ),
    "swap": AllowedOperation(
        "swap",
        swap_tokens,
        max_value=Decimal("1000"),
        cooldown_seconds=300
    ),
}

def execute(op_name: str, **kwargs):
    if op_name not in ALLOWED_OPS:
        raise PermissionError(f"Operation '{op_name}' not allowed")

    op = ALLOWED_OPS[op_name]

    if op.max_value and kwargs.get("amount", 0) > op.max_value:
        raise PermissionError(f"Amount exceeds limit: {op.max_value}")

    if op.requires_confirmation:
        return request_confirmation(op_name, kwargs)

    return op.handler(**kwargs)

---

5. Confirmation Flow

High-value operations require explicit confirmation:

import hashlib
import time

pending_confirmations = {}

def request_confirmation(operation: str, details: dict) -> str:
    code = hashlib.sha256(
        f"{operation}{time.time()}".encode()
    ).hexdigest()[:8].upper()

    pending_confirmations[code] = {
        "op": operation,
        "details": details,
        "expires": time.time() + 300  # 5 minutes
    }

    return f"⚠️ Confirm '{operation}' with code: {code}\n(expires in 5 minutes)"

def confirm(code: str):
    if code not in pending_confirmations:
        return "Invalid confirmation code"

    req = pending_confirmations.pop(code)

    if time.time() > req["expires"]:
        return "Confirmation code expired"

    return execute_confirmed(req["op"], req["details"])

---

6. Session Keys (ERC-4337)

Instead of giving agents master keys, issue bounded session keys:

from session_keys import SessionKeyManager

# Operator creates trading session for agent
config = SessionKeyManager.create_trading_session(
    agent_name="alpha-trader",
    operator_address="0x742d...",
    duration_hours=24,
    max_trade_usdc=1000,
    daily_limit_usdc=5000,
)

# Export for storage in 1Password
export_data = SessionKeyManager.export_for_1password(
    config,
    session_key_hex="0x..."  # Generated session key
)

# op item create ... (store in 1Password)

Session Key Benefits

Feature	Master Key	Session Key
Expiration	Never	Configurable (hours/days)
Spending limits	None	Per-tx and daily caps
Contract restrictions	Full access	Whitelist only
Revocation	Requires key rotation	Instant, no key change
Audit	None	Full operation log

---

7. Pre-commit Hook

Block commits containing secrets:

# Install
cp examples/pre-commit .git/hooks/
chmod +x .git/hooks/pre-commit

Detected patterns:

• ETH private keys (64 hex chars)
• OpenAI/Anthropic/Groq keys
• AWS access keys
• GitHub/GitLab tokens
• Slack/Discord tokens
• PEM private keys
• Generic PASSWORD/SECRET assignments
• BIP-39 seed phrases

---

8. Defense Layers

USER INPUT
    │
    ▼
┌────────────────────────────┐
│ Layer 1: Input Validation  │  ← Regex + encoding + unicode checks
└────────────────────────────┘
    │
    ▼
┌────────────────────────────┐
│ Layer 2: Op Allowlisting   │  ← Explicit whitelist only
└────────────────────────────┘
    │
    ▼
┌────────────────────────────┐
│ Layer 3: Value Limits      │  ← Max per-tx and per-day
└────────────────────────────┘
    │
    ▼
┌────────────────────────────┐
│ Layer 4: Confirmation      │  ← Time-limited codes for $$$
└────────────────────────────┘
    │
    ▼
┌────────────────────────────┐
│ Layer 5: Isolated Exec     │  ← Wallet ops != conversation
└────────────────────────────┘
    │
    ▼
OUTPUT SANITIZATION

---

Common Mistakes

❌ Keys in memory files

# memory/2026-02-07.md
Private key: 0x9f01dad551039daad...

Fix: Store reference only: Private key: [stored in 1Password: test-wallet]

❌ Keys in error messages

except Exception as e:
    log(f"Failed with key {private_key}: {e}")

Fix: Never include credentials in error context

❌ Keys in .env.example

PRIVATE_KEY=sk-ant-api03-real-key...  # "for testing"

Fix: Use obviously fake: PRIVATE_KEY=your-key-here

❌ "All" in transfer requests

User: "Transfer all my USDC"
Agent: *executes unlimited transfer*

Fix: Block "all/everything/max" patterns, require explicit amounts

❌ Trusting conversation context

# Wallet has access to conversation history
self.wallet.execute(conversation[-1]["content"])

Fix: Wallet operations must be isolated from conversation context

---

Testing

cd examples

# Run full test suite
python test_suite.py

# Test individual components
python sanitizer.py    # Output sanitization demo
python validator.py    # Input validation demo
python session_keys.py # Session key demo

Expected output: All tests passed

Test Evidence (v2.2.0 - 2026-03-11)

Sanitizer v3 Test Results - All 16 tests passed:

Output Sanitizer Test (v3)
============================================================

✅ PASS (expect detect)
   Input:     My key is 0x1234567890abcdef...
   Sanitized: My key is [PRIVATE_KEY_REDACTED]

✅ PASS (expect detect)
   Input:     Key: 1234567890abcdef...
   Sanitized: Key: [HEX_KEY_REDACTED]

✅ PASS (expect detect)
   Input:     First half: 1234567890abcdef...
   Sanitized: First half: [PARTIAL_KEY_REDACTED]

✅ PASS (expect detect)
   Input:     Send to 0x742d35Cc6634C0532925a3b844Bc454e4438f44e
   Sanitized: Send to 0x742d...f44e

✅ PASS (expect detect)
   Input:     Using sk-proj-abc123def456...
   Sanitized: Using [OPENAI_KEY_REDACTED]

✅ PASS (expect detect)
   Input:     API key is sk-ant-api03-abcdef...
   Sanitized: API key is [ANTHROPIC_KEY_REDACTED]

✅ PASS (expect detect)
   Input:     aws_secret_key=AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE...
   Sanitized: aws_secret_key=[AWS_ACCESS_KEY_REDACTED]...

✅ PASS (expect ignore)
   Input:     The hash is dGhpcyBpcyBhIHRlc3Q...
   Sanitized: The hash is dGhpcyBpcyBhIHRlc3Q...

✅ PASS (expect detect)
   Input:     abandon ability able about above absent...
   Sanitized: [SEED_PHRASE_12_WORDS_REDACTED]

✅ PASS (expect detect)
   Input:     Bearer eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9...
   Sanitized: Bearer [JWT_TOKEN_REDACTED]

✅ PASS (expect ignore)
   Input:     Normal text without secrets
   Sanitized: Normal text without secrets

✅ PASS (expect detect)
   Input:     Bot token: 123456789:ABCdefGHI...
   Sanitized: Bot token: [TELEGRAM_TOKEN_REDACTED]

============================================================
Cron Summary & Venice Key Sanitization Tests
------------------------------------------------------------

✅ PASS
   Input:     Venice API check: venice:key1 has 98 DIEM, venice:key2 has 96 DIEM. Total: 194 DIEM.
   Sanitized: Venice API check: [ venice:key1 ] has [DIEM_REDACTED], [ venice:key2 ] has [DIEM_REDACTED]...
   Expected fragment ✓: [ venice:key1 ]
   Expected fragment ✓: [ venice:key2 ]
   Expected fragment ✓: [DIEM_REDACTED]

✅ PASS
   Input:     Monitor: balance: 42.5 DIEM, threshold: 10 DIEM, total: 194 DIEM
   Sanitized: Monitor: [BALANCE_REDACTED], [THRESHOLD_REDACTED], [TOTAL_REDACTED]
   Expected fragment ✓: [BALANCE_REDACTED]
   Expected fragment ✓: [THRESHOLD_REDACTED]
   Expected fragment ✓: [TOTAL_REDACTED]

✅ PASS
   Input:     Using [ venice:key1 ] for fallback.
   Sanitized: Using [ venice:key1 ] for fallback.
   Expected fragment ✓: [ venice:key1 ]

✅ PASS
   Input:     remaining: 50 DIEM, spent: 30 DIEM
   Sanitized: remaining: [DIEM_REDACTED], spent: [DIEM_REDACTED]
   Expected fragment ✓: [DIEM_REDACTED]

============================================================
Results: 16 passed, 0 failed
All tests passed ✅

Key capabilities verified:

• venice:key references are bracketed: [ venice:key1 ]
• Already-bracketed references remain unchanged
• Sensitive metrics (balance, threshold, total, DIEM counts) are redacted
• All existing secret detection patterns work correctly

---

Checklist

• 1Password CLI installed and authenticated
• Secrets in 1Password vault, not files
• Session keys with expiry and limits
• Output sanitization on all responses
• Input validation before wallet ops
• Pre-commit hook installed
• Confirmation flow for high-value operations
• Wallet operations isolated from conversation
• .gitignore covers secrets and memory files
• Test suite passes

---

Security Model Limitations

This skill provides defense in depth, not a guarantee. Adversaries may:

1. Novel injection patterns - Regex can't catch everything; semantic analysis helps but isn't perfect
2. Social engineering - Convincing the operator to approve malicious operations
3. Timing attacks - Exploiting confirmation windows
4. Encoding evasion - New encoding schemes not covered

Recommendation: Layer these defenses with:

• Rate limiting
• Anomaly detection
• Human-in-the-loop for large transactions
• Regular security audits