diff --git a/src/config.rs b/src/config.rs
index f89c769..5e3f461 100644
--- a/src/config.rs
+++ b/src/config.rs
@@ -33,6 +33,38 @@ pub struct McpServer {
     pub disabled: Option<bool>,
 }
 
+/// Returns true when `allowedTools` is present and provides meaningful restriction.
+///
+/// A list that contains global wildcards like `*` / `all` / `any` is considered
+/// effectively unrestricted.
+pub fn has_effective_allowed_tools(server: &McpServer) -> bool {
+    match &server.allowed_tools {
+        Some(tools) if !tools.is_empty() => {
+            let has_specific_tools = tools.iter().any(|tool| !is_global_tool_wildcard(tool));
+            let has_global_wildcard = tools.iter().any(|tool| is_global_tool_wildcard(tool));
+            has_specific_tools && !has_global_wildcard
+        }
+        _ => false,
+    }
+}
+
+/// Returns true when `allowedTools` includes a global wildcard that effectively
+/// permits all tools.
+pub fn has_global_wildcard_allowed_tools(server: &McpServer) -> bool {
+    server
+        .allowed_tools
+        .as_ref()
+        .is_some_and(|tools| tools.iter().any(|tool| is_global_tool_wildcard(tool)))
+}
+
+fn is_global_tool_wildcard(value: &str) -> bool {
+    let lower = value.trim().to_lowercase();
+    matches!(
+        lower.as_str(),
+        "*" | "all" | "any" | ".*" | "all-tools" | "all_tools" | "tool:*" | "tools:*"
+    )
+}
+
 /// A config file that has been loaded and parsed.
 #[derive(Debug, Clone)]
 pub struct ParsedConfig {
@@ -215,6 +247,39 @@ fn parse_package_version(s: &str) -> Option<(String, String)> {
 mod tests {
     use super::*;
 
+    #[test]
+    fn test_effective_allowed_tools_requires_specific_entries() {
+        let server = McpServer {
+            allowed_tools: Some(vec!["read_file".to_string(), "list_files".to_string()]),
+            ..Default::default()
+        };
+
+        assert!(has_effective_allowed_tools(&server));
+        assert!(!has_global_wildcard_allowed_tools(&server));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn test_global_wildcard_allowed_tools_is_not_effective() {
+        let server = McpServer {
+            allowed_tools: Some(vec!["*".to_string()]),
+            ..Default::default()
+        };
+
+        assert!(!has_effective_allowed_tools(&server));
+        assert!(has_global_wildcard_allowed_tools(&server));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn test_mixed_allowlist_with_global_wildcard_is_not_effective() {
+        let server = McpServer {
+            allowed_tools: Some(vec!["read_file".to_string(), "all".to_string()]),
+            ..Default::default()
+        };
+
+        assert!(!has_effective_allowed_tools(&server));
+        assert!(has_global_wildcard_allowed_tools(&server));
+    }
+
     #[test]
     fn test_parse_basic_config() {
         let json = r#"{
diff --git a/src/inspect.rs b/src/inspect.rs
index 7250bfd..059fe7f 100644
--- a/src/inspect.rs
+++ b/src/inspect.rs
@@ -1,4 +1,7 @@
-use crate::config::{extract_all_package_names, extract_package_info, McpServer};
+use crate::config::{
+    extract_all_package_names, extract_package_info, has_effective_allowed_tools,
+    has_global_wildcard_allowed_tools, McpServer,
+};
 use crate::scanner;
 use serde::Serialize;
 use std::fmt::Write;
@@ -100,7 +103,8 @@ fn inspect_server(server_name: &str, config_file: &str, server: &McpServer) -> I
     let remote = is_remote(server);
     let transport = if remote { "remote" } else { "stdio" }.to_string();
     let auth_present = has_auth(server);
-    let allowlist_present = server.allowed_tools.as_ref().is_some_and(|t| !t.is_empty());
+    let allowlist_present = has_effective_allowed_tools(server);
+    let wildcard_allowlist = has_global_wildcard_allowed_tools(server);
 
     let network_tool = is_network_tool(server_name, server);
     let network_restricted = if network_tool {
@@ -134,6 +138,9 @@ fn inspect_server(server_name: &str, config_file: &str, server: &McpServer) -> I
     if !allowlist_present {
         risk_tags.push("no_allowlist".to_string());
     }
+    if wildcard_allowlist {
+        risk_tags.push("wildcard_allowlist".to_string());
+    }
     if !network_restricted {
         risk_tags.push("unrestricted_network".to_string());
     }
@@ -434,4 +441,25 @@ mod tests {
         assert!(out.contains("agentwise inspect"));
         assert!(out.contains("Scanned:"));
     }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn test_wildcard_allowlist_marked_as_risk() {
+        let server = McpServer {
+            command: Some("npx".to_string()),
+            args: Some(vec![
+                "-y".to_string(),
+                "@modelcontextprotocol/server-fetch".to_string(),
+            ]),
+            allowed_tools: Some(vec!["*".to_string()]),
+            ..Default::default()
+        };
+
+        let inspected = inspect_server("fetch", "test.json", &server);
+        assert!(!inspected.allowlist_present);
+        assert!(inspected
+            .risk_tags
+            .iter()
+            .any(|t| t == "wildcard_allowlist"));
+        assert!(inspected.risk_tags.iter().any(|t| t == "no_allowlist"));
+    }
 }
diff --git a/src/rules/allowlist.rs b/src/rules/allowlist.rs
index 6664908..e54dcb1 100644
--- a/src/rules/allowlist.rs
+++ b/src/rules/allowlist.rs
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-use crate::config::McpServer;
+use crate::config::{has_effective_allowed_tools, has_global_wildcard_allowed_tools, McpServer};
 use crate::rules::{Finding, Rule, Severity};
 
 /// AW-007: Flag configs with no tool filtering (allowedTools).
@@ -54,7 +54,8 @@ impl Rule for AllowlistRule {
     fn check(&self, server_name: &str, server: &McpServer, config_file: &str) -> Vec<Finding> {
         let mut findings = Vec::new();
 
-        let has_allowlist = server.allowed_tools.as_ref().is_some_and(|t| !t.is_empty());
+        let has_allowlist = has_effective_allowed_tools(server);
+        let has_wildcard_allowlist = has_global_wildcard_allowed_tools(server);
 
         if !has_allowlist {
             let high_risk = Self::is_high_risk(server_name, server);
@@ -64,22 +65,43 @@ impl Rule for AllowlistRule {
                 Severity::Medium
             };
 
-            let title = if high_risk {
+            let title = if has_wildcard_allowlist {
+                if high_risk {
+                    "Wildcard tool allowlist on high-risk server"
+                } else {
+                    "Wildcard tool allowlist is effectively unrestricted"
+                }
+            } else if high_risk {
                 "No tool allowlist on high-risk server"
             } else {
                 "No tool allowlist configured"
             };
 
+            let message = if has_wildcard_allowlist {
+                format!(
+                    "Server '{}' uses a global wildcard in allowedTools, which effectively exposes all tools",
+                    server_name
+                )
+            } else {
+                format!(
+                    "Server '{}' exposes all available tools with no filtering",
+                    server_name
+                )
+            };
+
+            let fix = if has_wildcard_allowlist {
+                "Replace wildcard entries in \"allowedTools\" with explicit least-privilege tool names"
+                    .to_string()
+            } else {
+                "Add \"allowedTools\" to restrict exposed tools to least privilege".to_string()
+            };
+
             findings.push(Finding {
                 rule_id: self.id().to_string(),
                 severity,
                 title: title.to_string(),
-                message: format!(
-                    "Server '{}' exposes all available tools with no filtering",
-                    server_name
-                ),
-                fix: "Add \"allowedTools\" to restrict exposed tools to least privilege"
-                    .to_string(),
+                message,
+                fix,
                 config_file: config_file.to_string(),
                 server_name: server_name.to_string(),
                 source: None,
@@ -147,4 +169,37 @@ mod tests {
         let findings = rule.check("test", &server, "test.json");
         assert_eq!(findings.len(), 1);
     }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn test_wildcard_allowlist_flagged() {
+        let rule = AllowlistRule;
+        let server = McpServer {
+            command: Some("npx".to_string()),
+            allowed_tools: Some(vec!["*".to_string()]),
+            ..Default::default()
+        };
+
+        let findings = rule.check("test", &server, "test.json");
+        assert_eq!(findings.len(), 1);
+        assert!(findings[0].title.contains("Wildcard"));
+        assert_eq!(findings[0].severity, Severity::Medium);
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn test_wildcard_allowlist_on_high_risk_server_is_high() {
+        let rule = AllowlistRule;
+        let server = McpServer {
+            command: Some("npx".to_string()),
+            args: Some(vec![
+                "-y".to_string(),
+                "@modelcontextprotocol/server-fetch".to_string(),
+            ]),
+            allowed_tools: Some(vec!["all".to_string()]),
+            ..Default::default()
+        };
+
+        let findings = rule.check("fetch", &server, "test.json");
+        assert_eq!(findings.len(), 1);
+        assert_eq!(findings[0].severity, Severity::High);
+    }
 }
diff --git a/src/rules/shell.rs b/src/rules/shell.rs
index f3658ed..deac172 100644
--- a/src/rules/shell.rs
+++ b/src/rules/shell.rs
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-use crate::config::McpServer;
+use crate::config::{has_effective_allowed_tools, McpServer};
 use crate::rules::{Finding, Rule, Severity};
 
 const SHELL_PATTERNS: &[&str] = &[
@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ impl Rule for ShellRule {
         }
 
         // Check if there are any restrictions (allowedTools, allowedCommands in env)
-        let has_restrictions = server.allowed_tools.as_ref().is_some_and(|t| !t.is_empty())
+        let has_restrictions = has_effective_allowed_tools(server)
             || server.env.as_ref().is_some_and(|env| {
                 env.keys().any(|k| {
                     let k = k.to_lowercase();
@@ -122,4 +122,19 @@ mod tests {
         let findings = rule.check("shell", &server, "test.json");
         assert!(findings.is_empty());
     }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn test_shell_with_wildcard_allowlist_is_flagged() {
+        let rule = ShellRule;
+        let server = McpServer {
+            command: Some("npx".to_string()),
+            args: Some(vec!["-y".to_string(), "mcp-shell-server".to_string()]),
+            allowed_tools: Some(vec!["*".to_string()]),
+            ..Default::default()
+        };
+
+        let findings = rule.check("shell", &server, "test.json");
+        assert_eq!(findings.len(), 1);
+        assert_eq!(findings[0].severity, Severity::Critical);
+    }
 }
diff --git a/src/rules/write_tools.rs b/src/rules/write_tools.rs
index 4231f1a..d49b5c4 100644
--- a/src/rules/write_tools.rs
+++ b/src/rules/write_tools.rs
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-use crate::config::McpServer;
+use crate::config::{has_effective_allowed_tools, McpServer};
 use crate::rules::{Finding, Rule, Severity};
 
 const WRITE_TOOL_PATTERNS: &[&str] = &[
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ impl Rule for WriteToolsRule {
         }
 
         // Only flag if there's no tool restriction
-        let has_allowlist = server.allowed_tools.as_ref().is_some_and(|t| !t.is_empty());
+        let has_allowlist = has_effective_allowed_tools(server);
 
         if !has_allowlist {
             findings.push(Finding {
@@ -126,4 +126,21 @@ mod tests {
         let findings = rule.check("memory", &server, "test.json");
         assert!(findings.is_empty());
     }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn test_write_server_with_wildcard_allowlist_is_flagged() {
+        let rule = WriteToolsRule;
+        let server = McpServer {
+            command: Some("npx".to_string()),
+            args: Some(vec![
+                "-y".to_string(),
+                "@modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres".to_string(),
+            ]),
+            allowed_tools: Some(vec!["all".to_string()]),
+            ..Default::default()
+        };
+
+        let findings = rule.check("database", &server, "test.json");
+        assert_eq!(findings.len(), 1);
+    }
 }