API Authentication via Token-Parameter Identifier Comparison
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current client-server architectures lack robust security measures to prevent unauthorized access to resources, particularly when a surreptitious user gains access to a client DLL, allowing them to make unauthorized API calls.
Innovation Solution
A service computing system that includes an API call mechanism where a client computing system obtains a signed authorization token with an identifier, places it in the API call header, and includes the identifier as a parameter. The server compares the identifier from the token with the parameter identifier to authorize the API call.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional API authentication is used without token verification, then the API call process is simple and fast, but security is weak and unauthorized access can occur
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary verification by extracting and comparing identifiers from both the API call parameters and the authorization token header before processing the actual API request. This advance check ensures security validation occurs before resource access, preventing unauthorized calls while maintaining a clear authentication flow.
Solution Approach 2:
The authorization token serves as an intermediary credential that carries the identifier information. Instead of directly trusting API parameters, the system uses the token as a mediator to verify the caller's identity through identifier comparison, adding a security layer without requiring complex cryptographic verification of the entire token structure.
2Reliability
If identifier comparison between token and parameter is implemented, then unauthorized access is prevented, but additional processing steps are required
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs only the essential partial verification needed for security - extracting and comparing the identifier values from the token and parameters. It does not require full token validation or complex cryptographic checks, achieving sufficient security with minimal processing overhead by doing just enough verification.
3Ease of operation
If only parameter-based authentication is used, then the API interface is simple, but it is vulnerable to identifier manipulation attacks
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges two authentication sources - the identifier from API parameters and the identifier from the authorization token header - into a single verification process. By requiring both to match, it combines the simplicity of parameter-based access with the security of token-based authentication, preventing identifier manipulation while keeping the interface straightforward.
Data Source
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AI summary
A service computing system receives an API call in which an authorization token, that contains an identifier in the content of the authorization token, is included in a header of the API call. The identifier is also included as a parameter passed in with the API call. The service computing system parses the API call to obtain the authorization token, and the identifier included in the authorization token. It also obtains the identifier passed in as a parameter of the API call. The service computing system compares the identifier obtained from the authorization token to the identifier passed in as a parameter of the API call to determine whether they match. If they do not match, the API call is processed as an unauthorized API call. A security system in the service computing system authorizes the API call based on the comparison.