# API Basics
source: https://developer.mastercard.com/transaction-insights/documentation/api-basics/index.md

## API Security {#api-security}

### Client Authentication {#client-authentication}

Mastercard uses OAuth 1.0a for authenticating your application. You can manage your authentication keys from your [Developer Dashboard](https://developer.mastercard.com/dashboard) after you created a project using the Mexico Insights API.
Tip: Do you want to learn more about the authentication scheme Mastercard uses? For more, read our [Using OAuth 1.0a to Access Mastercard APIs](https://developer.mastercard.com/platform/documentation/security-and-authentication/using-oauth-1a-to-access-mastercard-apis/) guide.

## Environments {#environments}

The table describes the different environments that are available.

| **Environment** |                                                                                                                  **Description**                                                                                                                   |
|-----------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Sandbox         | The pre-production test environment contains the latest pre-release or released version of the APIs, intended for full integration testing before moving to production. At this stage, use the Sandbox keys generated during the project creation. |
| Production      | The production environment contains the latest production API release. You can request approval to obtain the Production keys. Once approved, you can proceed to complete testing in the Production environment before launching your solution.    |