Building Secure REST APIs: Authentication, Tokens, and Rate-Limiting

Securing APIs is essential to protect data and services. Use HTTPS, strong authentication, token best practices, and rate-limiting to reduce abuse.

Authentication options

• OAuth2 / OpenID Connect for delegated access
• JWT for stateless tokens (beware of storage & revocation challenges)
• API keys for service-to-service, combined with mTLS where possible

Rate limiting

Apply per-user and per-IP limits, and return clear headers to clients to indicate remaining quota.