JWTs or JSON Web Tokens are most commonly used to identify authenticated users and validate API requests. Part of this verification process requires the use of cryptographic keys to validate the integrity of the JWT to make sure it has not been tampered with. The set of keys used for this process is called JWKS or JSON Web Key Set. In this blog post, we will go over what JWKS are and how they are used.
What Are JSON Web Keys (JWKS)?
JSON Web Keys (JWKs) are a JSON data structure that represents cryptographic keys. These keys are primarily used for verifying JWTs in OAuth flows. JWKs are designed to be easily exchanged, making them a standardized and interoperable format for representing cryptographic keys.