HOL Guard

Open-source local guard that vets an AI coding agent's shell, file, package and MCP actions before they run.

ToolAI Agent SecurityOpen SourceCloudSelf-hosted

Pricing: Free tier at USD 0 with local scanning, on-device decisions and approvals; Guard Cloud plans at USD 4.99 per month (Solo), USD 15 per month (Pro) and USD 30 per seat per month (Team), with two months free on annual billing; Enterprise is custom pricing with SSO, SIEM integration and on-premises options.

Reviewed by the Cyber Vendor Guide editorial team against the public sources cited below · Last reviewed September 2026 · How we review listings

What is HOL Guard?

HOL Guard is an open-source, local-first runtime security layer that sits between an AI coding agent and the tools it wants to run. It evaluates shell commands, file access, package installs and MCP tool calls before execution and allows, blocks or routes them for approval according to policy, with the vendor stating that checks take under 50 ms and that files never leave the machine. It supports agents including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Gemini CLI, OpenCode and GitHub Copilot CLI, installs via pipx on Python 3.10 or later, and offers desktop installers for Apple silicon macOS 13 and later, Linux x86_64 and Windows x64, with Windows marked experimental. The core is Apache-2.0 and needs no account, while an optional Guard Cloud adds shared history, team policy and dashboards at USD 4.99 (Solo), USD 15 (Pro) and USD 30 per seat (Team) per month. It is made by HOL, operated by Hashgraph Online DAO LLC, a consortium established in November 2024 whose founding members include HashPack and Hgraph. The GitHub repository shows 570 stars and 3,705 commits, and PyPI lists version 3.0.131 released on 8 September 2026.

Best for: Developers and teams using AI coding agents who want local pre-execution controls on risky actions without sending data to a cloud service.

Pros

✓ Apache-2.0 source on GitHub with 570 stars and PyPI releases using Trusted Publishing
✓ No account or cloud connection needed for the free local tier
✓ Published pricing for the optional cloud tiers

Things to check

• Windows support is marked experimental on the install page, with WSL recommended
• No certifications listed in the trust packet and no company location published

Reported in public reviews and vendor documentation. See sources below.

Key Features

Intercepts shell commands, file access, package installs and MCP tool calls before execution

Policy outcomes of allow, block or ask, with bundled strict, balanced and permissive presets

Runs locally with no account required on the free tier

Supports Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, GitHub Copilot CLI and other agents

Apache-2.0 licensed, with source on GitHub and PyPI releases published via Trusted Publishing

Plugin Scanner for agent plugins and MCP integrations, plus a GitHub Action with SARIF upload

Structured JSON SIEM events with raw commands, prompts and secret material redacted

Optional Guard Cloud for shared history, team policy and fleet dashboards

Do you work at HOL Guard? to confirm the details or send us a correction.

Sources & references

Where the information on this listing comes from. Always verify pricing and capabilities against the vendor before a purchasing decision.

HOL Guard: official websitePrimary source

HOL Guard: Stop AI agents from reading secrets or running risky tools

HOL Guard documentation hub

Official docs

HOL Guard security trust packet

Official site

HOL (Hashgraph Online) homepage

Official site

Hashgraph Online DAO: Genesis (7 November 2024)

Official blog

hashgraph-online/hol-guard

GitHub

hol-guard on PyPI

PyPI

HOL Guard: Open-source antivirus for AI agents (25 August 2026)

Help Net Security

HOL Guard: The 1st Firewall for AI Agents

Product Hunt

Hashgraph Online: Open standards powering the emerging agentic economy

Hedera case study

Spot an error, or do you represent HOL Guard? Request a correction.

Quick Info

Pricing	Free tier at USD 0 with local scanning, on-device decisions and approvals; Guard Cloud plans at USD 4.99 per month (Solo), USD 15 per month (Pro) and USD 30 per seat per month (Team), with two months free on annual billing; Enterprise is custom pricing with SSO, SIEM integration and on-premises options.
Model	Open source (Apache-2.0) with optional paid cloud subscription
Founded	2024
Cloud	Yes
Self-Hosted	Yes
Open Source	Yes

Visit Website →View on GitHub →

Last updated: Sep 8, 2026