Madaket Authentication

generated: '2026-08-25'
method: searched
source: https://registry.npmjs.org/@madaket/provider-api-client-js (first-party README,
  @madaket/provider-api-client-js@0.0.3) + openapi/madaket-provider-api.yml
docs: https://www.npmjs.com/package/@madaket/provider-api-client-js#documentation-for-authentication
note: >-
  Madaket documents the Provider API authentication scheme verbatim in the README of its own
  npm clients (@madaket/provider-api-client-js, @madaket/provider-api-client-ts) and ships a
  standalone token generator (@madaket/api-token-generator). Both credentials travel as QUERY
  STRING parameters, not headers. There is no OAuth 2.0 / OIDC surface, so scopes/ is not
  applicable. Credentials are issued by Madaket on request — there is no self-service key
  issuance.
summary:
  types:
  - apiKey
  api_key_in:
  - query
  oauth2: false
  openid_connect: false
  mtls: false
  self_service_signup: false
  credential_issuance: contact Madaket; no public developer signup
schemes:
- name: api_key
  type: apiKey
  in: query
  parameter: api_key
  description: Madaket-issued API key (UUID form). Issued on request; contact Madaket.
  sources:
  - openapi/madaket-provider-api.yml
  - https://registry.npmjs.org/@madaket/provider-api-client-js
- name: auth_token
  type: apiKey
  in: query
  parameter: auth_token
  description: >-
    Time-windowed derived token. URL-safe Base64 of SHA-256(api_key + api_secret + timestamp),
    where timestamp is the current GMT time formatted yyyy-mm-dd-HH-MM with the final character
    removed, creating a rolling ten-minute window. Valid at least 10 and at most 20 minutes.
  sources:
  - openapi/madaket-provider-api.yml
  - https://registry.npmjs.org/@madaket/api-token-generator
token_derivation:
  algorithm: SHA-256
  cleartext: <api_key><api_secret><timestamp>
  timestamp_format: 'GMT yyyy-mm-dd-HH-MM with the trailing character truncated (10-minute window)'
  encoding: Base64, then URL-safe substitution (+ -> -, / -> _, trailing = stripped)
  validity: at least 10 minutes, at most 20 minutes
  reference_implementation: https://www.npmjs.com/package/@madaket/api-token-generator
observations:
- id: secret-never-transmitted
  note: The API secret is never sent on the wire; only a time-bounded hash of it is. That is a
    deliberate and defensible design for a 2018-era key scheme.
- id: credentials-in-query-string
  note: >-
    Both api_key and auth_token are QUERY parameters, so they are written to access logs,
    proxy logs and browser history in a way an Authorization header would not be. For an API
    carrying provider PII (SSN, DOB, DEA numbers) this is the most significant weakness in the
    scheme.
- id: no-scopes
  note: No OAuth 2.0, no scopes and no per-operation permission model are published. Every
    credential appears to carry the full surface it is entitled to.
- id: authorized-query-models
  note: >-
    The spec distinguishes plain (Board, Specialty, University) from *Authorized* query models
    (AdverseActionAuthorizedSearchQuery, DeaLicenseAuthorizedFilterQuery, ...) on the
    provider-sensitive resources, which implies an authorization tier is enforced server-side
    on the resources carrying regulated data.