Instantly Security Basics
Overview
Security best practices for Instantly API keys, tokens, and access control.
Prerequisites
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Instantly SDK installed
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Understanding of environment variables
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Access to Instantly dashboard
Instructions
Step 1: Configure Environment Variables
.env (NEVER commit to git)
INSTANTLY_API_KEY=sk_live_*** INSTANTLY_SECRET=***
.gitignore
.env .env.local .env.*.local
Step 2: Implement Secret Rotation
set -euo pipefail
1. Generate new key in Instantly dashboard
2. Update environment variable
export INSTANTLY_API_KEY="new_key_here"
3. Verify new key works
curl -H "Authorization: Bearer ${INSTANTLY_API_KEY}"
https://api.instantly.com/health
4. Revoke old key in dashboard
Step 3: Apply Least Privilege
Environment Recommended Scopes
Development read:*
Staging read:*, write:limited
Production Only required scopes
Output
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Secure API key storage
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Environment-specific access controls
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Audit logging enabled
Error Handling
Security Issue Detection Mitigation
Exposed API key Git scanning Rotate immediately
Excessive scopes Audit logs Reduce permissions
Missing rotation Key age check Schedule rotation
Examples
Service Account Pattern
const clients = { reader: new InstantlyClient({ apiKey: process.env.INSTANTLY_READ_KEY, }), writer: new InstantlyClient({ apiKey: process.env.INSTANTLY_WRITE_KEY, }), };
Webhook Signature Verification
import crypto from 'crypto';
function verifyWebhookSignature( payload: string, signature: string, secret: string ): boolean { const expected = crypto.createHmac('sha256', secret).update(payload).digest('hex'); return crypto.timingSafeEqual(Buffer.from(signature), Buffer.from(expected)); }
Security Checklist
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API keys in environment variables
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.env files in .gitignore
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Different keys for dev/staging/prod
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Minimal scopes per environment
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Webhook signatures validated
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Audit logging enabled
Audit Logging
interface AuditEntry { timestamp: Date; action: string; userId: string; resource: string; result: 'success' | 'failure'; metadata?: Record<string, any>; }
async function auditLog(entry: Omit<AuditEntry, 'timestamp'>): Promise<void> { const log: AuditEntry = { ...entry, timestamp: new Date() };
// Log to Instantly analytics await instantlyClient.track('audit', log);
// Also log locally for compliance console.log('[AUDIT]', JSON.stringify(log)); }
// Usage await auditLog({ action: 'instantly.api.call', userId: currentUser.id, resource: '/v1/resource', result: 'success', });
Resources
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Instantly Security Guide
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Instantly API Scopes
Next Steps
For production deployment, see instantly-prod-checklist .