What is an API key? A credential, not ordinary frontend configuration
Explain API key authentication, distinguish endpoints and OAuth tokens and validate integration without exposing credentials.
Understand the concept
An API key identifies or authenticates callers and may belong to an account, project or permission scope. It is neither an endpoint URL nor automatically an OAuth access token. Valid credentials still require correct requests and verified results; authentication does not establish answer accuracy.
Keys establish caller identity rather than business content
Requests combine an endpoint, authentication and task input. They serve different roles. OpenAI advises keeping persistent keys out of browsers; temporary credentials have separate issuance and validity conditions. Authentication failures, unsupported fields and incorrect answers are distinct problems and should not all trigger key replacement.
Validate integration with public input without printing keys
For a public classification example, load credentials from the intended secure location, record status and identifiers and inspect the result. Do not copy full headers or print keys as proof. Distinguish authentication from task errors. No credentials or paid calls were used here. One response also does not validate application failure handling.
Maintain permission scope and rotation
Use scoped credentials and exclude development keys from source and deliverables. Verify replacement configuration and handle old credentials under project rules with recovery. A backend still needs access controls. Store identifiers and change status, not secret values. Keys address identity; costs and outputs still require controls. No usable key or completed account connection is provided here.
Checked sources
These sources support the concepts and methods described here. Examples and test scope are labeled separately; check the version of the tools you use.