Feed 16,024+ classified AI-tool domains into Netskope, Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps, or Zscaler. Transform your CASB from a passive observer into an active AI governance engine.
Firewalls, DNS filters, and endpoint agents each play a role in AI governance. None match the depth of visibility and control a CASB provides.
A CASB doesn't just see that a user connected to an AI domain. It sees session context, uploaded data, user identity, device posture, and specific actions performed. The difference: knowing an employee visited chat.openai.com vs. knowing a finance employee uploaded a 2MB spreadsheet to ChatGPT from an unmanaged device at 11pm on a Saturday.
CASB sits as a forward/reverse proxy in the traffic path. Every HTTP request passes through for real-time inspection, DLP enforcement, and blocking before data reaches the AI tool.
Best for: Enforcement and data loss prevention.
Connects to cloud service APIs after the fact to scan for policy violations and discover shadow IT. Cannot prevent data from reaching an AI tool — only detects that it already has.
Best for: Discovery and audit.
Deploy inline mode for enforcement and API mode for discovery. The AI Tools Blocklist provides the domain intelligence layer your CASB needs for both.
Category-based policies scale where individual domain decisions cannot:
Inspect the full HTTP transaction — uploaded files, submitted prompts, pasted data — not just domains and IPs. Session-level visibility is impossible at the firewall or DNS layer.
Bind policies to users and groups from your IdP — not just IPs. Apply different AI access rules to engineering, legal, HR, and finance with appropriate DLP profiles.
Scan file uploads and form submissions in real time. Detect PII, source code, credentials, and financial data before they leave the organization.
| Aspect | Inline Mode | API Mode |
|---|---|---|
| How it works | Forward/reverse proxy in the traffic path | Connects to SaaS APIs (Graph, Google Workspace, etc.) |
| What it sees | Full request/response content, files, prompts, payloads | API-level activity logs within sanctioned apps |
| Best for | Blocking access, DLP scanning, real-time enforcement | Shadow IT discovery, embedded AI features in SaaS |
| Limitation | Requires agent-based traffic steering on endpoints | Cannot prevent data submission — only detects after the fact |
| AI tool coverage | All 16,024+ AI domains via blocklist integration | Only sanctioned apps with API connectors (M365 Copilot, etc.) |
Most enterprises deploy both modes simultaneously. Inline mode enforces real-time policies; API mode supplements with retrospective discovery of AI features within sanctioned SaaS platforms.
Netskope's Cloud Confidence Index (CCI) classifies thousands of cloud apps, but the AI landscape evolves faster than any single vendor catalog. The AI Tools Blocklist bridges this gap with 16,024+ classified AI domains importable as custom app definitions.
Load domains grouped by category via Netskope's REST API as custom URL lists.
Map each URL list to a real-time protection policy with category-appropriate actions.
Daily feed updates push new AI tool domains to Netskope automatically — no manual intervention.
| Category | Action | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Text Generation | User Alert | Coach users, allow with data sensitivity warning |
| Code Generation | Block | Source code exfiltration & IP exposure risk |
| Image Generation | Allow + Log | Low data sensitivity from text-to-image prompts |
| Data Analytics | Block | Users upload entire datasets with sensitive records |
| Voice & Speech | Block | Biometric voice data exposure risk |
| AI Agents | Block | Autonomous data access beyond user intent |
| Healthcare AI | Block | PHI/HIPAA compliance exposure |
Configure the DLP profile AI-Upload-Sensitive-Data to match your organization's sensitive data patterns — credit card numbers, SSNs, API keys, and internal project names.
All AI-related domain traffic must be steered through Netskope's inline proxy. Without proper steering, traffic to novel AI tools bypasses the CASB entirely, and your governance policies are ineffective. The AI Tools Blocklist provides the comprehensive domain list needed for full steering coverage.
MCAS integrates natively with Entra ID Conditional Access, Defender for Endpoint, and the Microsoft 365 security stack. For Microsoft-centric organizations, it provides the most friction-free path to CASB-based AI governance.
Analyzes firewall and proxy traffic logs to identify cloud apps in use, user counts, and data upload volumes.
Network telemetry from managed endpoints captures AI tool access even when traffic bypasses the proxy.
Tag every AI-related app with custom risk scores and governance tags. Newly launched AI tools are immediately identified and tagged as "unsanctioned."
Imports the blocklist and tags each app in the MCAS catalog with a category-specific label. Marks all as unsanctioned to trigger governance workflows.
Fires when a new or unclassified AI tool appears in network traffic. Alerts the SOC and auto-marks the app as unsanctioned.
Inspects all file uploads to sanctioned AI tools (ChatGPT, Copilot, Claude) against DLP profiles for PII, source code, and financial data.
The Session Policy requires Azure AD Conditional Access App Control, which routes sessions through the MCAS reverse proxy. For organizations already using Conditional Access for M365, extending it to AI tools is a configuration change — not an architecture change.
Combine Conditional Access with MCAS session controls to enforce layered access policies for AI tools.
A typical AI governance conditional access policy requires all of:
Users who don't meet all four conditions are denied access entirely. This enables nuanced policies: allow GitHub Copilot from a managed device on the corporate network, but block from personal devices or unfamiliar locations.
Zscaler Internet Access (ZIA) provides inline CASB through its cloud proxy architecture. The AI Tools Blocklist integrates through custom URL categories and cloud application control policies.
Key Zscaler capabilities for AI governance:
Without SSL inspection, Zscaler sees only the domain name (from the SNI field) but cannot inspect uploaded content. DLP policies won't scan AI tool submissions, and activity controls can't distinguish browsing from data exfiltration. Add all AI tool URL categories to the SSL inspection include list with zero exceptions.
Allow browsing ChatGPT but block file uploads and paste operations.
Allow API access to Claude from the engineering subnet but block web interface from all others.
Allow AI tool interaction but block download of generated content that may contain hallucinated data.
The AI Tools Blocklist covers the long tail of AI tools that Zscaler's built-in catalog does not recognize. Combined with Zscaler's native activity controls for major platforms, this provides comprehensive AI governance.
Map each of the 18 AI tool categories to a separate Zscaler URL category. Block, allow with caution, or monitor based on your risk appetite.
Enable mandatory SSL decryption for all AI tool URL categories. Ensure AI domains never fall into bypass or exempt categories.
Blanket bans drive adoption underground. Effective governance uses a tiered model that recognizes productivity benefits while managing data risks.
The AI Tools Blocklist's 18-category taxonomy maps directly to this model. New domains auto-inherit their category's governance tier daily.
Vetted, contracted, and fully governed. DLP inline scanning on all uploads. Session controls enforced. Activity logging enabled. Conditional access policies require managed device + compliant posture. Vendor DPA and exit strategy in place.
Permitted with monitoring. User coaching alerts on access. DLP blocks sensitive data uploads. Full session logging for audit trail. No vendor agreement — not approved for confidential data. Quarterly review for promotion to sanctioned or demotion to blocked.
All access denied at the CASB. Users redirected to internal AI tool request portal. Default tier for all unassessed domains. Automatic classification via AI Tools Blocklist category mapping. Assessed tools that fail security review remain permanently blocked.
DLP scanning is the most critical control for sanctioned and tolerated tiers. The risk shifts from unauthorized access to unauthorized data submission.
AI-specific DLP profiles should detect:
| Content Detected | Action | Alert Level |
|---|---|---|
| Internal project name | User coaching notification | Informational |
| Credit card / SSN | Block submission + SOC alert | High |
| Source code + embedded API keys | Block + alert + escalate as credential exposure | Critical |
This graduated response avoids alert fatigue while ensuring high-risk data submissions are stopped immediately. See our AI data handling policy guide for detailed DLP profile configuration.
Available CASB session controls:
Tenant restrictions ensure employees use your enterprise AI tenant (where DPAs apply) — not personal accounts where data may be used for model training.
Session policies check the tenant identifier in authentication tokens. Integrates with Entra ID Conditional Access App Control.
Tenant restrictions configured through Steering Configuration with HTTP header injection rules for AI tool domains.
Custom header insertion rules in URL filtering policies restrict access to approved organizational tenants only.
Employees don't submit procurement requests to use a free AI chatbot. They open a browser tab and start working. CASB telemetry enriched with the AI Tools Blocklist is the most effective mechanism for discovering shadow AI at scale.
CASB analyzes inline proxy traffic or ingests logs from firewalls, proxies, and DNS servers.
Match observed domains against 16,024+ AI-specific domains. Without the blocklist, obscure AI tools appear as "uncategorized web traffic."
Generate automated alerts including category classification, users who accessed it, data volume uploaded, and recommended governance action.
New AI tools enter the Blocked tier by default. CASB enforces the block while the security team assesses for promotion to Tolerated or Sanctioned.
Correlate all web traffic against the daily-updated blocklist. New AI domains trigger SOC alerts with category, risk score, and recommended governance tier. Integrate with your shadow AI detection program.
CASB telemetry reveals data volume uploaded, session frequency, peak usage times, and which departments adopt AI tools fastest. A tool used by one employee is a different risk than one embedded in a team's daily workflow.
Daily update cadence ensures even the newest AI tools are captured within 24 hours. No AI tool operates in a governance vacuum — every tool is either assessed and governed, or blocked pending assessment.
Run your existing CASB or proxy logs against the full AI Tools Blocklist. Most organizations discover employees use 5–10x more AI tools than leadership expects. This baseline provides the urgency needed to fund a CASB-based AI governance program. Automate via the AI Tools Blocklist API.
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