Complex and Inconsistent API Authentication Options
6/10 MediumAPIs offer confusing authentication mechanisms with multiple versions (especially OAuth), inconsistent implementations, and poor documentation of authentication flows. Getting credentials and understanding the correct authentication method is often one of the trickiest initial steps, especially when API teams and customers have mismatched use-case assumptions.
Collection History
Before you can use an API, you have to figure out how to get credentials to access the API. OAuth is often used to access data on behalf of an end-user, but there are multiple versions of OAuth, there are inconsistencies in how it is implemented. Oftentimes the confusion that arises with authentication comes from a gap between how the API team thinks about the use cases for the API and how the customer thinks about the use cases for the API.