APIs are integral for contemporary software development. At times we may require better visibility into APIs scattered across the system. The lack of visibility can lead to data breaches. Security is at risk.
The IT sector relies on API discovery methods to tackle the problem. During an API discovery process, an inventory is created regarding APIs. The inventory is relied upon heavily in subsequent procedures.
Recently, manual API discovery is in the news. Most experts believe manual API discovery can be unrealistic or almost impossible.
READ MORE: Trulioo: Global Identity Management Way Ahead of Peers
Using search engines, API directories, and other internet resources for publicly accessible APIs, one may manually find APIs. Developers must work things out on their own for internal APIs or APIs that are not accessible to the general public.
The process may not always be effective when APIs are available in huge numbers.
In more complicated programs with microservices architectures, the process rapidly becomes unworkable. Also, the ever-increasing number of APIs makes manual discovery of APIs impossible. Besides, APIs are something that is minimally static.
READ MORE: Lookout: Exceptional Data-centric Cloud Security Imparted in Innovative Ways
APIs undergo constant modifications. New APIs are being developed constantly. The other constraint is the time involved in the process. On average, manual API discovery may require about 40 hours per API.
It is obvious that manual discovery is unrealistic. Automated API discovery will be the best option.