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OAuth App - Authorization Code Setup

In this guide we walk you through how to setup an API application using the authorization code workflow

Setting up an authorization code application

Step 1. Authorization Code Setup

Creating an authorization code app

  1. Once you have logged in to the Criteo Partners Portal, create a new App by clicking on ➕ button in the My apps section

This will open a modal where you can select type of application.

1.1. Create app

  1. App details
    1. Provide your app name and description. You can also provide an optional image to identify your application. In your App page you will be able to define the scope of your application and the OAuth parameters. Please see this page to see more details on how to define your app scope.
  2. Authentication method
    1. Select your app authentication method. You will have the option to select Client Credentials or Authorization Code. To decide which option is best for your organization, review the guide above.

1.2. App activation

  1. Service
    1. Select which Criteo service you want to use your API application with. Chose C-Growth for marketing solutions or C-Max for retail media

1.3. Authorizations

  1. Domains
    1. Select the domains to choose which permission access your application will need

Once all these steps have been done, click "Activate app" to activate the application

Redirect URI

Applications using Authorization code workflow, will need to specify a Redirect URI as part of your app scope.


Step 2. Set Up Your OAuth Parameters

Once you have defined the scope of your application, you will be able to setup what you need for the authorization code workflow

ParametersDescription
client_idYour public key accessible in app credentials section.
You can add up to 5 pairs of credentials. Can be added and managed also once the App has been activated.
client_secretYour secret key, accessible only once when creating a pair of client_id and client_secret in credentials section.
You can add up to 5 pairs of credentials. Can be added and managed also once the App has been activated.
redirect_uriThe URL to redirect the user to after consent delegation. HTTPs protocol required.
You can add up to 30 redirect URIs. Can be added and managed also once the App has been activated.

You can now publish the app, and start an authorization code workflow.


2.1. - Consent URL Creation

Once you have defined the parameters of your App you can start implementing your authorization code flow.

Consent URL

  1. To request access to a user to access their data, you will create a Consent link (to be sent to the user or implemented through a button in your platform that will redirect the user to the link) with the following structure and parameters:

ℹ️

Authorization Code v. Client Credentials Consent URLs

If you are familiar with the Client Credentials workflow, you will notice that in the partner portal you won't see the "Generate Consent URL" button. This is because with authorization code workflow you are required to provide the redirect URI which is unique to your organization. So these will need to be configured within your workflow.

You will need to construct a consent URL similar to the example below while passing the required parameters for your application.

https://consent.criteo.com/request?response_type=code&client_id={client_id}&redirect_uri={redirect_uri}&state={state}
ParametersRequiredDescription
response_type=codeYesIndicates that an authorization code is expected as outcome.
client_idYesYour public key accessible in app credentials section.
redirect_uriYesThe URL to redirect the user to after consent delegation. HTTPs protocol required. Defined in the redirect URI section in Developer Dashboard.
stateNoA string that you can provide and that will be returned as-is in the final redirection (usually used to prevent Cross-Site Request Forgery attacks).
  1. The Consent link will direct your user to Criteo Consent page will look like this example:

  1. The user will be able to choose what advertiser(s) from their portfolio they want to give access to.
  2. User will approve the request by clicking on "Approve"

📝

Notes

A consent request is displayed to a user in all cases except in the following:

  • The client_id does not match any published API app.
  • The redirect_uri is not authorized (e.g not accessible from public network)
  • An unexpected error occurred in our backend.

In any of the cases above an error message will be displayed.

2.2. - Redirection and Access Code

Once the user has completed the Consent Delegation flow, we redirect your user to the following URL:

https://www.mywebsite.com/?code=58f4cd15-8087-48af-bab7-bba06d2df1da&state=4lr4e

This URL is forged with the authorized redirect_uri and the following query parameters:

ParameterDescription
codeAn authorization code valid for 30 seconds, usable only once.
stateThe state parameter that you originally provided (returned as-is).

If the consent request is denied, we redirect to the same redirect-uri but with an 'error' query parameter instead of a 'code'.


Step 3. Exchanging Access Code For Access Token

Now that you have an authorization code, you can trade it for an access token by making the following POST call. You call will need to be setup this way:

POST https://api.criteo.com/oauth2/token
 
grant_type=authorization_code
&code={code}
&redirect_uri={redirect_uri}
&client_id={client_id}
&client_secret={client_secret}

Example of Token Request

curl -L 'https://api.criteo.com/oauth2/token?grant_type=authorization_code&client_id=<MY_CLIENT_ID>&client_secret=<MY_CLIENT_SECRET>&redirect_uri=<MY_URI>' \
-H 'Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded' \
-d 'client_id=<MY_CLIENT_ID>' \
-d 'client_secret=<MY_CLIENT_SECRET>' \
-d 'redirect_uri=<MY_URI>' \
-d 'code=<MY_CODE>' \
-d 'grant_type=authorization_code'
ParameterDescription
grant_type=authorization_codeIndicates that you are providing an authorization code
codeAuthorization code returned during redirection
redirect_uriMust match the redirect_uri used for the authorization request
client_idYour public key accessible in app credentials section
client_secretYour secret key, accessible only once when creating a pair of client_id and client_secret in credentials section

The response from Criteo API will be the following:

{
    "access_token": "eyJhbGciOi",
    "token_type": "Bearer",
    "refresh_token": "eyJhbGciO",
    "expires_in": 900
}
ParameterDescription
access_tokenA short-lived (valid for 900 seconds) access token*
refresh_tokenA long-lived refresh token (that expires after 6 months) that can be used to renew the access token (see next section).
token_type=BearerType of token.
expires_inLifetime of the token in seconds.

🚧

Token Lifetime

The refresh token will be revoked if the user that provided consent to an account changes the role or leaves the organization. Such an account needs to be re-authorized by launching the new consent flow and having the new administrator accept the consent.

3.1. - Using Refresh Token

When an access token is close to expiration, you can get a new one using a refresh token via the following request:

POST https://api.criteo.com/oauth2/token
 
grant_type=refresh_token
&refresh_token=eyJ.ela4a9e.afd
&client_id=6e75a
&client_secret=j7MfAp
ParameterDescription
grant_type=refresh_tokenIndicates that you are providing a refresh token.
refresh_tokenRefresh token shared when requesting an access token.
client_idYour public key accessible in app credentials section.
client_secretYour secret key, accessible only once when creating a pair of client_id and client_secret in credentials section.

The response will be the same as when issuing an access token


Demo

Below you can find a code for a demo application in NodeJS that uses Express JS framework.

var express = require('express');
var passport = require('passport');
var OAuth2Strategy = require('passport-oauth2').Strategy;
var app = express();
var port = 3000;

// Passport setup
passport.use(new OAuth2Strategy({
    clientID: 'CLIENT_ID', // Enter your client_id here
    clientSecret: 'CLIENT_SECRET', // Enter your client_secret here
    authorizationURL: 'https://consent.criteo.com/request',
    callbackURL: `http://localhost:${port}/criteo-auth/callback`,
    tokenURL: 'https://api.criteo.com/oauth2/token',
    state: 'togorot'
  },
  function(accessToken, refreshToken, profile, cb) {
    cb(null, { accessToken, refreshToken });
  }
));
app.use(passport.initialize());

// Route declarations
app.get('/', function(req, res) {
  res.send('<a href="/criteo-auth">Link my Criteo account!</a>');
});

app.get('/criteo-auth', passport.authenticate('oauth2'));

app.get('/criteo-auth/callback',
  passport.authenticate('oauth2', { session: false }),
  function(req, res) {
    res.send(`<div>Authentication successful!</div><div>Access token:</div><textarea>${req.user.accessToken}</textarea><div>Refresh token:</div><textarea>${req.user.refreshToken}</textarea>`);
  }
);

console.log(`OAuth test app started on http://localhost:${port}`);
app.listen(port);
{
  "name": "oauth-node",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "description": "",
  "main": "index.js",
  "scripts": {
    "start": "node index.js"
  },
  "author": "",
  "license": "ISC",
  "dependencies": {
    "ejs": "^3.1.6",
    "express": "^4.17.1",
    "passport": "^0.4.1",
    "passport-oauth2": "^1.6.0"
  }
}

How to run the demo?

  1. Run npm install
  2. Connect to the developer portal and create an app according to the instructions above
  3. Create an "Authorization code" app.
  4. Generate app credentials and enter the client_id and client_secret in index.js.
  5. Register "http://localhost:3000/criteo-auth/callback" as the redirect URI.
  6. Run npm run start
  7. Open http://localhost:3000

FAQ

What happens if my client_id and client_secret are compromised?
You will need to delete the set of credentials in the App page and create a new one. You will need to request access again to your users.