# LLM10 - Unbounded Consumption

> Failure to impose limits on LLM resource consumption leading to DoS or excessive costs.

- **Category**: Owasp Llm
- **Subcategory**: top10_2025
- **Canonical URL**: https://designpattern.fyi/owasp_llm/llm10_unbounded_consumption/

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## Description
'**Intent**: Prevent abuse of LLM resources through proper rate limiting, token budgets, and consumption controls.

**Context**: LLM APIs can be expensive and resource-intensive. Without proper limits, attackers or misconfigured clients can cause excessive costs, degraded performance, or denial of service.

**Solution**: Implement rate limiting per user and API key. Set token budgets and cost ceilings. Monitor usage patterns. Implement queue management. Use caching for repeated queries. Set timeout limits for LLM operations.'



## Use Cases
Use when deploying LLM services, managing API access, or operating multi-tenant LLM platforms.





## Trade-offs


### Advantages

- Controls operational costs

- Prevents denial of service

- Ensures fair resource allocation

- Enables capacity planning




### Considerations & Drawbacks

- Limits may frustrate legitimate heavy users

- Rate limiting complexity for multi-tenant

- Cost estimation for variable-length outputs







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**Reference**: [Original Source](https://genai.owasp.org)