generated: '2026-07-18'
method: searched
source: https://arkm.com/llms/guides/api-keys-authentication.md
docs: https://arkm.com/llms/guides/api-keys-authentication.md
summary:
  types: [apiKey]
  api_key_in: [header]
  oauth2_flows: []
  notes: >-
    The published OpenAPI (openapi/arkham-openapi-original.json) does not declare securitySchemes; the
    auth model is documented in the API Keys & Authentication guide. All REST requests require an
    API-Key header. The x402 agent surface (api.arkm.com/x402) uses payment (USDC on Base) or a
    Sign-In-With-X wallet signature as its auth instead of an API key.
schemes:
- name: ApiKeyHeader
  type: apiKey
  in: header
  parameter: API-Key
  description: >-
    All API requests must include a valid API-Key header. Requests without it are rejected as
    unauthorized (401 "error validating API key"). Keys are created in the Arkham UI (Settings -> API
    Keys, or the API Dashboard) and shown once. Use the API-Key header, NOT Authorization.
  sources:
  - https://arkm.com/llms/guides/api-keys-authentication.md
key_management:
  create: https://arkm.com/api-dashboard?tab=api-keys
  settings: https://arkm.com/settings
  default_key_limit: 5
  rotation: create-new -> deploy -> revoke-old
  best_practice: separate keys per environment (prod/staging/dev) and per service
x402_auth:
  base_url: https://api.arkm.com/x402
  model: payment-is-auth
  payment_protocol: x402 v2 (EIP-3009 USDC transfer authorization on Base, eip155:8453)
  free_discovery_auth: sign-in-with-x wallet signature (chains, networks/status, arkm/circulating)