Most applications today expose an API to facilitate seamless interaction with their features and data. However, ensuring the security of your API is essential for various reasons.
JSON Web Token - A standard format for securely transmitting information between parties as a JSON object.
In this post, I’ll walk you through securing your API using JWT Authorizers and Amazon Cognito. But first, let’s clarify what a JWT is and why it’s crucial in securing APIs.
With secure API endpoints, you can scale your application more confidently, knowing that only authorized and authenticated users can access each part, reducing the risk of system overload due to malicious requests.
Securing your API helps safeguard it from attacks like unauthorized data scraping, injection attacks, and brute force attacks, adding a critical layer of defense against malicious actors.
Proper security protocols help guarantee that data remains intact and private during transit.
Start by creating a Lambda function in AWS. This function will handle your API requests.
Authenticate your users by creating a User Pool in Amazon Cognito.
You can now secure your APIs with JWT Authorizers.
With stateless JWTs, your API scales effortlessly without session management overhead. Plus, strong API security builds user trust and helps meet compliance standards.