openapi: 3.0.3
info:
  title: Sterling Authentication Webhooks API
  description: 'The Sterling API integrates background and identity screening into your platform and manages the process end to end. It is a RESTful, OAuth2-secured API: you exchange a Client ID and Client Secret for an access token, then create candidates, look up the screening packages available to your account, initiate screenings (orders), invite candidates by email or hosted link, retrieve results/reports (PDF or HTML), and receive real-time status updates via webhook callbacks.


    ACCESS IS GATED. Credentials are provisioned per screening region (US, EMEA, Canada, or APAC) by request through Sterling; there is a separate set of credentials for the sandbox/integration environment and for production.


    GROUNDING AND MODELING NOTE: The documented, confirmed operations are the OAuth token exchange, GET /packages, POST /candidates, POST /screenings (including the invite object and the callbackUri for webhooks), and the availability of results/reports with per-item statuses. The remaining operations in this document (list/retrieve/cancel screenings, retrieve/update candidates, retrieve a package, report retrieval paths, recurring screening management, and standalone webhook subscription management) are HONESTLY MODELED on Sterling''s documented order lifecycle and are marked in each operation description with "[MODELED]". The API request host is also modeled: exact hosts are provisioned with your credentials. The OAuth host auth.sterlingcheck.app and the documentation host apidocs.sterlingcheck.app are confirmed; api.sterlingcheck.app is a representative modeled base.


    Sterling is a First Advantage company (First Advantage completed its $2.2B acquisition of Sterling Check Corp on October 31, 2024).'
  version: '2.0'
  contact:
    name: Sterling (a First Advantage company)
    url: https://www.sterlingcheck.com/services/api/
  x-documentation: https://apidocs.sterlingcheck.app/
  x-developer-portal: https://developer.sterlingcheck.app/
  x-acquisition: First Advantage completed acquisition of Sterling Check Corp on 2024-10-31 ($2.2B).
servers:
- url: https://api.sterlingcheck.app/v2
  description: Production (MODELED representative host - exact host provisioned with production credentials)
- url: https://api-sandbox.sterlingcheck.app/v2
  description: Sandbox / Integration (MODELED representative host - exact host provisioned with sandbox credentials)
security:
- oAuth2ClientCredentials: []
- bearerAuth: []
tags:
- name: Webhooks
  description: Real-time screening status callbacks.
paths:
  /webhooks:
    get:
      operationId: listWebhooks
      tags:
      - Webhooks
      summary: List webhook subscriptions
      description: '[MODELED] List account-level webhook subscriptions. The confirmed mechanism is the per-screening callbackUri on POST /screenings; an account-level subscription surface is modeled here.'
      responses:
        '200':
          description: A list of webhook subscriptions.
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                type: object
                properties:
                  data:
                    type: array
                    items:
                      $ref: '#/components/schemas/WebhookSubscription'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
    post:
      operationId: createWebhook
      tags:
      - Webhooks
      summary: Create a webhook subscription
      description: '[MODELED] Register an account-level callback URL to receive screening status events.'
      requestBody:
        required: true
        content:
          application/json:
            schema:
              $ref: '#/components/schemas/WebhookSubscriptionCreate'
      responses:
        '201':
          description: The created webhook subscription.
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/WebhookSubscription'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
  /webhooks/{webhookId}:
    delete:
      operationId: deleteWebhook
      tags:
      - Webhooks
      summary: Delete a webhook subscription
      description: '[MODELED] Delete an account-level webhook subscription.'
      parameters:
      - name: webhookId
        in: path
        required: true
        schema:
          type: string
      responses:
        '204':
          description: Deleted.
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
components:
  schemas:
    WebhookSubscription:
      type: object
      properties:
        id:
          type: string
        callbackUri:
          type: string
          format: uri
        events:
          type: array
          items:
            type: string
        active:
          type: boolean
    WebhookSubscriptionCreate:
      type: object
      required:
      - callbackUri
      properties:
        callbackUri:
          type: string
          format: uri
        events:
          type: array
          items:
            type: string
    Error:
      type: object
      properties:
        code:
          type: string
        message:
          type: string
  responses:
    Unauthorized:
      description: Missing or invalid access token.
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/Error'
    NotFound:
      description: The requested resource was not found.
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/Error'
  securitySchemes:
    oAuth2ClientCredentials:
      type: oauth2
      description: OAuth2 client credentials grant using your Client ID and Client Secret.
      flows:
        clientCredentials:
          tokenUrl: https://auth.sterlingcheck.app/oauth/token
          scopes: {}
    bearerAuth:
      type: http
      scheme: bearer
      description: The access token returned from the OAuth token exchange, sent as a Bearer token.