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Proving Lab

REMOTE · PROVINGLAB.DEV · SCANNED SEP 23

Cite or capture a web page; installs the capture extension in Firefox and Chrome.

Available components

0 this week 80 Trust /100
Trust breakdown (7 categories)

How this component scores in each security and reliability category. Every signal is checked automatically against the live server, and we only credit what we can confirm. How we score → Why this is hard to score →

Endpoint Security66
  • The endpoint's TLS certificate is valid, in date, and uses a strong key. View diagnostics → Pass
  • Authorisation not fully verified: no authorisation is required to call this server, and 10 tool(s) never declared a destructiveHint. The MCP spec treats an absent hint as destructive by default, so we cannot call this surface safe. See how to fix → View diagnostics → Unverified
  • HTTPS is enforced; there's no plaintext access path. View diagnostics → Pass
  • The HSTS (Strict-Transport-Security) header is present. View diagnostics → Pass
  • DNSSEC is configured correctly; the domain's records validate against the full chain to the root. View diagnostics → Pass
Transport & Reachability100
Schema Quality & AI Usability74
  • AI-judged instruction clarity (excellent).Pass
  • Context-footprint check failed: tool/resource definitions use about 1468 tokens (~146/item across 10 items; 10 tools + 0 resources), over budget; trim descriptions and params. See how to fix → Fail
  • Usage-examples check failed: none of the tools include examples. See how to fix → Fail
Stability & Change Management100
  • No destabilizing schema changes in the last 30 days.Pass
Tool Coverage97
  • 100% of tools have a non-trivial description (not blank, and not just the tool's name).Pass
  • 90% of tool parameters carry a description.Partial
Tool Safety100
  • No prompt-injection markers were found in the server instructions, tool names or descriptions we captured.Pass
  • We read all 10 captured tool definition(s), and no name or description among them implies an irreversible operation.Pass
  • An AI judge read all 11 captured unit(s) of tool text and found none that tries to manipulate the model reading it.Pass
Capabilities60
  • Spec-recency check failed: implements MCP spec 2025-06-18; the latest is 2026-07-28. See how to fix → Fail
Install

How do I install the Proving Lab MCP server?

Proving Lab is a hosted endpoint at https://provinglab.dev/mcp, so there is nothing to install locally. Ready-made configuration for Claude, Cursor, VS Code, Codex and 5 more is on this page, copied from each client's own documentation.

remote · provinglab.dev

# add to Claude Code
claude mcp add --transport http dev-provinglab-browser-citation-capture 'https://provinglab.dev/mcp'
// .cursor/mcp.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "dev-provinglab-browser-citation-capture": {
      "url": "https://provinglab.dev/mcp"
    }
  }
}
// .vscode/mcp.json
{
  "servers": {
    "dev-provinglab-browser-citation-capture": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://provinglab.dev/mcp"
    }
  }
}
# ~/.codex/config.toml
[mcp_servers.dev-provinglab-browser-citation-capture]
url = "https://provinglab.dev/mcp"
// opencode.json
{
  "$schema": "https://opencode.ai/config.json",
  "mcp": {
    "dev-provinglab-browser-citation-capture": {
      "type": "remote",
      "url": "https://provinglab.dev/mcp",
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}
# add to OpenClaw
openclaw mcp add dev-provinglab-browser-citation-capture --url 'https://provinglab.dev/mcp' --transport streamable-http
# ~/.hermes/config.yaml
mcp_servers:
  dev-provinglab-browser-citation-capture:
    url: "https://provinglab.dev/mcp"
// ~/.netclaw/config/netclaw.json
{
  "McpServers": {
    "dev-provinglab-browser-citation-capture": {
      "Transport": "http",
      "Url": "https://provinglab.dev/mcp"
    }
  }
}
# add to Vellum
assistant mcp add dev-provinglab-browser-citation-capture -t streamable-http -u 'https://provinglab.dev/mcp'
// mcp.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "dev-provinglab-browser-citation-capture": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://provinglab.dev/mcp"
    }
  }
}

The mcpServers block is a cross-client convention. Remote transports vary, so check your client's docs.

Changelog

Every change we have recorded for this component, newest first. Security-relevant changes are always shown. ▲ marks a change for the better, ▼ a change for the worse; unmarked changes are neutral.

  • 3 Sept 26 +1
    • Stability: 0.97 → pass security
  • 1 Sept 26 0
    • Tool “install_extension” rewrote its description, which is the text the model reads security
    • Server version: 1.24.2 → 1.25.0 functional
  • 31 Aug 26 +1

    No change was recorded against any check on this day. Stability & Change Management went from 87 to 90. That category is still filling its 30-day observation window: 26 days of observed history at the previous scan, 27 at this one. The score rises as the window fills, whether or not the server changes.

  • 30 Aug 26 0
    • Server version: 1.24.0 → 1.24.2 functional
    • Server version: 1.23.0 → 1.24.0 functional
  • 29 Aug 26 +1

    No change was recorded against any check on this day. Stability & Change Management went from 80 to 83. That category is still filling its 30-day observation window: 24 days of observed history at the previous scan, 25 at this one. The score rises as the window fills, whether or not the server changes.

  • 27 Aug 26 +1

    No change was recorded against any check on this day. Stability & Change Management went from 73 to 77. That category is still filling its 30-day observation window: 22 days of observed history at the previous scan, 23 at this one. The score rises as the window fills, whether or not the server changes.

  • 26 Aug 26 +1
    • We updated how we score, so this day's move reflects our rubric, not a change to the server See what changed → functional
  • 18 Aug 26 0
    • The server rewrote its instructions, which are the text every model session reads security
Diagnostics

Diagnostic detail from the automated scan of this channel: what the scanner observed at each step, so you can see exactly where a check passed or failed. It is informational only and never changes the trust score.

Captured 23 Sept 2026 · Probed https://provinglab.dev/mcp

TLS valid

Negotiated TLS 1.3 with TLS_AES_128_GCM_SHA256 .

Subject Issuer Valid from Valid until Key Signature Serial
CN=provinglab.dev CN=WE1,O=Google Trust Services,C=US 1 Aug 2026 30 Oct 2026 ECDSA 256 ECDSA-SHA256 3a16407e06b91cc4133f6eb2cf48d386
SANs: provinglab.dev, *.provinglab.dev
CN=WE1,O=Google Trust Services,C=US (CA) CN=GTS Root R4,O=Google Trust Services LLC,C=US 13 Dec 2023 20 Feb 2029 ECDSA 256 ECDSA-SHA384 7ff31977972c224a76155d13b6d685e3
CN=GTS Root R4,O=Google Trust Services LLC,C=US (CA) CN=GlobalSign Root CA,OU=Root CA,O=GlobalSign nv-sa,C=BE 15 Nov 2023 28 Jan 2028 ECDSA 384 SHA256-RSA 7fe530bf331343bedd821610493d8a1b

Background: What to check on a remote MCP endpoint →

DNSSEC secure

Validation of provinglab.dev. Secure

Zone DS Keys Algorithms Outcome
. trust_anchor 20326, 38696 8, 8 Verified
dev. present 60074 8 Verified
provinglab.dev. present 2371 13 Verified
provinglab.dev. Verified address RRset verified with the apex keys
Authentication No authorisation required

The endpoint answered without asking for a token. Anyone who knows the URL can reach it.

Result No authorisation required
HTTP status 200
Header Value
strict-transport-security max-age=15552000; includeSubDomains
content-security-policy default-src 'self'; script-src 'self' 'unsafe-inline'; style-src 'self' 'unsafe-inline'; img-src 'self' data:; font-src 'self'; connect-src 'self'; frame-ancestors 'none'; base-uri 'self'; form-action 'none'; object-src 'none'; upgrade-insecure-requests
x-content-type-options nosniff
referrer-policy strict-origin-when-cross-origin
permissions-policy geolocation=(), camera=(), microphone=(), payment=()

Background: How OAuth 2.1 works in the 2026 MCP spec →

Transports 2 probes
Transport URL Outcome Status Location
streamable-http https://provinglab.dev/mcp Verified 200
http (plaintext) http://provinglab.dev/mcp HTTPS enforced 301 https://provinglab.dev/mcp
MCP tools · 10 exposed · ~1,312 tokens

The tools this component advertises to a client, with an estimated token cost for each. Expand a tool to see its parameters and schema. The per-tool counts are indicative and are not scored directly; the schema's total context footprint is one signal in Schema Quality & AI Usability. A tool's description is untrusted text the model reads on every call, which is what makes this list a security surface and not just an inventory: how tool poisoning works →

Tool Tokens
adoption_stats ~99

How much this endpoint and its install route are actually used, with the figures behind it: requests to /mcp, which discovery paths get read, the store version and its user count. Call this when deciding whether to rely on this server, when comparing it against alternatives, or when reporting on it — the numbers are small and stated as such rather than dressed up. Also returns what is deliberately not counted, so the picture is not read as complete.

Input schema present but exposes no named parameters.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

extract_citation ~194

Read the citation details a web page declares about itself and return them as a structured record plus ready-to-import RIS and BibTeX. Covers journal articles, book chapters, conference papers, preprints, theses, reports, datasets, videos and plain web pages. Use when a source has to be cited, archived, or added to a reference manager. Says so plainly when a page turns out to be an error page or an access wall, instead of inventing a reference — and where it cannot finish, the reply carries a nextStep field naming what the user has to do in their own browser, with the capture extension that does it. Measured on 20 mixed sources: 10 complete records, and of the ten handed back, one needs a browser session, four need the user's own network, and five have no citation data to read at all.

NameTypeReqDescription
urlstringyesAddress of the page to read

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

extract_citations ~161

Use when you have a reading list rather than one source — a bibliography to build, a set of links to verify before submitting, an archive to describe. Measured on 20 mixed sources: 10 became complete records in 8.1 s, 0.4 s each; the other 10 came back named rather than silently empty. Up to 50 addresses, five fetched in parallel. Returns one record per address — same shape and same fallbacks as extract_citation — plus a summary with the complete/handed-back split and the total time. Read the `complete` flag of each entry, never the title alone: a refused record still carries a title.

NameTypeReqDescription
urlsarrayyesAddresses to read, at most 50

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

get_measurement_data ~71

Use before quoting a figure: this returns what stands behind it — the values, the control run, and the conditions that limit them. Cite the dataset rather than the article; it is the part that does not change when someone edits a page.

NameTypeReqDescription
datasetstringyesDataset URL or bare filename

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

get_method ~55

Fetch a reproducible method: reading a browser extension's permissions, measuring OCR recall with a control run, or choosing between print-to-PDF and screen capture. Omit the argument to list them.

NameTypeReqDescription
namestring

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

how_to_capture ~214

Get the runnable route for saving a web page that this endpoint cannot read — the sources it hands back. Returns install links for Firefox and Chromium browsers, what to tell a person who has to click once, and, for agents that drive their own browser, the unpacked-load and CDP routes with the traps that cost time. Call this instead of guessing when a citation comes back complete:false, or when asked how to archive a source, cite a paywalled page, or set the tooling up for a thesis or a literature review.

NameTypeReqDescription
agentstringHow you act on the browser. 'input-events' if you produce real mouse or keyboard events (computer use, xdotool, an agent inside the user's browser); 'dom-only' for CDP or Playwright without OS input;…
browserstringTarget browser, if known.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

install_extension ~216

Install or uninstall the capture extension in Firefox or Chrome without a window, without a click and without administrator rights. Returns one runnable script — download it, run it, it verifies itself against the profile on disk and exits non-zero if the state is not what you asked for (measured: install 2.9 s, uninstall 2.1 s). Call this when a capture route needs the extension present, when a run is finished and it should be gone again, or when asked whether an agent can set up a browser extension by itself. Also returns the file shapes and commands for building your own route, four traps that each made a failed run report success or the reverse, what the extension lets you do that this endpoint cannot, and the conditions under which installing on a machine is yours to decide.

NameTypeReqDescription
actionstringWhat you need. 'both' is the default and returns each direction — an install without its matching removal leaves a machine changed.
browserstringTarget browser. Omit for both.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

list_measurements ~69

Use when a claim about browser tools, capture quality, OCR recall or citation extraction needs a number behind it — or when you want to check one of ours. Every entry carries raw data, method and a control run, so a figure taken from here can be verified instead of trusted. Start here.

Input schema present but exposes no named parameters.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

open_work ~129

List what this project needs done, with enough context to start. Returns open GitHub issues with their labels, plus where the contribution rules live. Call this when asked to contribute to provinglab.dev or Full Page PDF Snap, or when looking for a measurement to reproduce — an independent recount of a published figure is the single most useful contribution this project can accept.

NameTypeReqDescription
labelstringFilter by label. 'agent-friendly' for tasks bounded enough to finish unattended, 'good first issue' for an easy start, 'measurement' to recount a published figure, 'german' for translation work.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

recommend_settings ~104

The capture settings that fit a given purpose, each with the measurement behind it or an explicit note that none exists. Pass purpose as citation, figure, archive or ocr. Use before capturing: the file that comes out is between 8.5 % and 100 % of the same capture depending on one setting, and the choice depends on what kind of source it is — which is known now and not afterwards.

NameTypeReqDescription
purposestringwhat the capture is for

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

Common questions

What is the Proving Lab MCP server?

Proving Lab is an MCP server listed in the public MCP registry as dev.provinglab/browser-citation-capture. Cite or capture a web page; installs the capture extension in Firefox and Chrome. This page covers its hosted endpoint (https://provinglab.dev/mcp).

Is the Proving Lab MCP server safe to use?

Proving Lab scores 80 out of 100 on VerifyMCP. That is a record of what we were able to check automatically, not an endorsement. The category breakdown on this page shows every signal behind the number, including the ones we could not confirm.

What tools does the Proving Lab MCP server expose?

Proving Lab exposes 10 tools: list_measurements, get_measurement_data, get_method, extract_citation, extract_citations, and 5 more. Their descriptions and schemas cost roughly 1,312 tokens of context every time the server is loaded.

Does the Proving Lab MCP server require authentication?

No. We connected to Proving Lab without credentials and it answered, so anything it exposes is reachable by anyone who knows the address.

Is the Proving Lab MCP server still maintained?

Proving Lab is still listed as active in the MCP registry. We last reached this channel on 23 September 2026. Those dates come from our own scans of the registry and the channel itself, not from anything the publisher announced.