How to manage third-party keys in React-Native?

Introduction

There’s no doubt that a myriad of toolkits improve lives as devs or software developers, and that’s common.

There are billions of awesome developers all over the world who put in the effort and never stop creating and trying to make development even better with even more apps and resources, whether it’s in DevOps, frontend, server-side tools, or service, you could presumably testify to a magnificent tool or service you use now that makes life easier for you.

In most cases, you’ll be interacting with a backend and using a third-party service in your React-Native app, and you’ll be given private keys to use in the mobile app. React native development solutions utilize third-party API keys to integrate external services and their apps, enhancing user experience and extending app capabilities.

When building an application in React Native, you’ll need to take care to protect your private keys when you transfer them to the store and then to the user’s device, which brings up the question of how to implement a similar setup of the web/backend as.env files in our React-Native apps.

In this blog, we will give a brief introduction to the react native API key and will show you how to create a .env file in your React-Native application.

What Are API Keys?

Third-party keys in React Native refer to external API keys or authentication tokens provided by services or platforms outside your app. Furthermore, they access specific features, services, or data such as maps, analytics, or social media integrations. These keys ensure secure communication between your app and external service.

Upon signing up for an API, you will receive an API key. API keys are secret passwords that prove to providers that your app or you are accessing the API. Because most API keys have zero expiration dates, it’s frightening not to be concerned about the security of your keys when some APIs are free while others charge a fee for access.

Create React-Native Project

npx react-native init myTestProject

This will create a folder containing react-native files.

Now, let’s create our .env file where we’ll be having all third-party API keys kept.

Now that our project is fully operational, it’s ready to implement react-native-dotenv, a wonderful package that enables us to read .env files in our app.

To install it we need to run the following command

yarn add react-native-dotenv

In the root directory create a babel.config.js file if it does not exist and copy-paste the below snippet.

module.exports = {
      presets: ['module:metro-react-native-babel-preset'],
      plugins: [
        ["module:react-native-dotenv", {
          "moduleName": "@env",
          "path": ".env",
          "blacklist": null,
          "whitelist": null,
          "safe": false,
          "allowUndefined": true
        }]
      ]
      };

Now everything is done then we can try to put the key in the .env file and access it to the project file.

Put this private key to the .env file:

PRIVATE_KEY=’myprivate_keys’

You can import this key to a file like this:

Import React from ‘react’
      Import {Text,View} from ‘react-native’
      Import {PRIVATE_KEY} from ‘@env’
  
      const App=()=>{
          return(
          <View style={{flex:1,justifyContent:’center’,alignItems:’center’}}>
            <Text>{PRIVATE_KEY}</Text>
          </View>
        ) 
      }

That’s how you can use this key more privately and can access it on any page of your application.

Reference:

https://reactnative.dev/docs/security

Securing third-party keys in React-Native apps

It would be best to protect your API keys for your application’s security and integrity. Below, we highlighted why you should follow React-Native key governance best practices.

1. 1. 1. To prevent unauthorized API requests.

Obtaining your API key can allow someone to make unauthorized requests, which could result in severe consequences, mainly when your API contains sensitive information.

1. 1. 2. Financial insecurity.

APIs can be expensive. Someone can also abuse your API key and exceed your budget requests, leaving you with a hefty bill and jeopardizing your financial stability if they gain access to the key.

1. 1. 3. Data theft, manipulation, or deletion.

Using your API key can result in stealing, manipulating, deleting, or using your data for malicious purposes.

Best practices for handling third-party keys in a React Application

Below, we highlighted a few of the best approaches for handling API keys:

Environment Variable

Using environment variables for keys in React-Native helps you store keys in environment variables to separate them from your source code. Furthermore, the system allows you to keep sensitive data hidden from the public, such as API keys, tokens, and passwords. The Dotenv package is one of the most popular env packages you can use to protect the data from security breaches.

2. Git Ignore

To prevent accidental exposure, exclude environmental files containing keys from version control. Before staging your commits or pushing your code to GitHub, add the .env file to the .gitignore file.

3. Secure storage

Use encrypted storage solutions like ‘react-native-keychains’ to store sensitive keys securely on the devices.

4. Error handling

Handle API key-related errors gracefully and securely to avoid exposing sensitive information.

5. Documentation and regular review

Document how to set up and manage keys for your team. Periodically review your key management practices to ensure keys are practical and up-to-date.

Conclusion

The above blog offers expert insights on the role of third-party keys in React-Native projects, instilling confidence in data security. It highlights the React-Native key management tools that shield APIs from unauthorized access, ensuring robust protection against breaches.

FAQ