---
id: agent-runtime-sandboxing
title: 'Agent Runtime Sandboxing'
schema_type: TechArticle
category: ai
language: en
confidence: medium
last_verified: '2026-06-02'
created_date: '2026-06-02'
generation_method: ai_structured
derived_from_human_seed: true
conflict_of_interest: none_declared
is_live_document: false
data_period: static
atomic_facts:
  - id: fact-agent-runtime-sandboxing-1
    statement: >-
      Docker Engine security documentation describes container isolation using Linux kernel features such as namespaces, cgroups, capabilities, and mandatory access control.
    source_title: Docker Engine Security
    source_url: https://docs.docker.com/engine/security/
  - id: fact-agent-runtime-sandboxing-2
    statement: >-
      Kubernetes Pod Security Standards define Privileged, Baseline, and Restricted policies for broad coverage of security-sensitive pod settings.
    source_title: Pod Security Standards
    source_url: https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/security/pod-security-standards/
  - id: fact-agent-runtime-sandboxing-3
    statement: >-
      NIST SP 800-190 provides application container security guidance across images, registries, orchestrators, containers, and host operating systems.
    source_title: NIST SP 800-190 Application Container Security Guide
    source_url: https://csrc.nist.gov/pubs/sp/800/190/final
completeness: 0.82
known_gaps:
  - The article does not compare specific hosted code-execution sandboxes or browser-isolation vendors.
disputed_statements: []
primary_sources:
  - title: Docker Engine Security
    type: documentation
    year: 2026
    url: https://docs.docker.com/engine/security/
    institution: Docker
  - title: Pod Security Standards
    type: documentation
    year: 2026
    url: https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/security/pod-security-standards/
    institution: Kubernetes
  - title: NIST SP 800-190 Application Container Security Guide
    type: standard
    year: 2017
    url: https://csrc.nist.gov/pubs/sp/800/190/final
    institution: NIST
secondary_sources: []
updated: '2026-06-02'
ai_models:
  - gpt-5-codex
---

## TL;DR

Agent runtime sandboxing isolates code execution, browser automation, file access, and network calls so an agent cannot freely affect the host environment or unrelated systems.

## Core Explanation

Sandboxing turns an agent runtime into a controlled execution boundary. It should limit filesystem scope, network egress, process privileges, secret access, and kernel capabilities while preserving enough observability to debug failures.

Containers are a common base layer, but containers alone are not a complete policy. Strong agent sandboxes combine least-privilege credentials, restricted volumes, resource quotas, syscall and capability controls, per-task cleanup, and review gates before high-impact operations.

## Source-Mapped Facts

- Docker Engine security documentation describes container isolation using Linux kernel features such as namespaces, cgroups, capabilities, and mandatory access control. ([source](https://docs.docker.com/engine/security/))
- Kubernetes Pod Security Standards define Privileged, Baseline, and Restricted policies for broad coverage of security-sensitive pod settings. ([source](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/security/pod-security-standards/))
- NIST SP 800-190 provides application container security guidance across images, registries, orchestrators, containers, and host operating systems. ([source](https://csrc.nist.gov/pubs/sp/800/190/final))

## Further Reading

- [Docker Engine security](https://docs.docker.com/engine/security/)
- [Kubernetes Pod Security Standards](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/security/pod-security-standards/)
- [NIST SP 800-190](https://csrc.nist.gov/pubs/sp/800/190/final)