Auth and Permissions

MCP authentication uses the same API key system as the public API.

Authentication

• Send your key as Authorization: Bearer <API_KEY>
• Missing or invalid keys return 401
• Keys are workspace-scoped, so tools only access that workspace data

Permission model

MCP does not bypass API permissions. Each MCP tool is mapped to a public API route + method, and tool access is granted only when that route is allowed for the key.

In practice, this means:

• Read-only keys expose read-only tools
• Full-access keys expose create/update/delete tools
• Route-restricted keys expose only matching tools

Recommended setup

• Use separate keys for MCP and direct API traffic
• Start with minimum permissions, then expand as needed
• Rotate keys regularly and expire test keys

For full key management guidance, see API Authentication.