Inlet API integration guide

Introduction
Prerequisites
Integration Steps
- 3.1. Obtain API Credentials
- 3.2. Implement API Endpoints
- 3.3. Validate and Verify Customer Data
Certification Process
- 4.1. Preparing for Certification
- 4.2. Submitting for Certification
- 4.3. Certification Review
Going Live

1. Introduction

Inlet offers a robust API that enables partners to integrate their services seamlessly, providing enhanced functionalities and improved customer experiences. This guide provides detailed instructions and important considerations to ensure your integration is successful and compliant with Inlet's requirements.

2. Prerequisites

Before beginning the integration process, ensure you have:

Partner Agreement: A signed partnership agreement with Inlet.
Technical Expertise: Access to developers familiar with RESTful APIs and JSON.
Development Environment: A secure environment for development and testing.
Compliance Understanding: Knowledge of relevant data protection laws (e.g., GDPR).
Understand Use cases:Understand your business use cases, and match them with the use-cases inlet supports.

3. Integration Steps

3.1. Obtain API Credentials

When you are ready to test Inlet will provide you with some credentials to test, make sure to store them securely.
Important: Store these credentials securely and do not share them.

3.2. Implement API Endpoints

Step 1: Review API Documentation

Access the Inlet API Documentation.
Understand the available endpoints, request/response structures, and authentication mechanisms.

Step 2: Develop API Calls

Start with basic endpoints to establish connectivity.
Implement required endpoints for your integration, handling all HTTP methods as needed.

Step 3: Handle Errors and Exceptions

Implement comprehensive error handling based on Inlet's error and reply messages.
If there was an error the "message" part in our response clearly states what went wrong.
Responses needs to be read and acted on accordingly
Log errors securely for debugging purposes.

Step 4: Implement a retry mechanism

Some locks and requests to us depend on upstream services, and timeouts of their servers occur from time to time. In such cases, you have to retry every 3-5 minutes for a minimum of 30 minutes or until success.
After 30 minutes of retries, if issues persist, contact Inlet support directly on email support@inlet.tech. Ideally, this should be an automated process.

3.3. Validate and Verify Customer Data

Critical Step: Data Verification

Inlet requires that all customer data sent through the API is accurate and verified. This ensures data integrity and compliance with legal regulations.

Step 1: Email Verification

Format Validation (required): Use regex or validation libraries to ensure email addresses conform to standard formats.
Domain Verification (optional): Check MX records to verify the domain exists.
User Verification (optional): Implement email confirmation steps where customers confirm their email addresses.

Step 2: Phone Number Verification

Format Validation (required): Use libraries to validate phone numbers, including country codes. We recommend: Google Llibphonenumber
Country Code Inclusion (required): Ensure all phone numbers include the country code in international format (e.g., +1 for USA).
User Verification (optional): Send an OTP (One-Time Password) via SMS to confirm ownership.

Step 3: Data Sanitization

Remove any malicious code or scripts from user input.
Encode data properly before transmission.

Step 4: Mandatory Fields

Ensure all required fields as per the API specification are provided.
Validate data types (e.g., strings, integers) and constraints (e.g., field lengths).

4. Certification Process

Before your integration can go live, it must be certified by Inlet to ensure it meets all technical and compliance standards.

4.1. Preparing for Certification

Step 1: Review Certification Requirements

Access the Partner Certification Process.
Understand the criteria, including technical functionality, data validation, and user experience standards.

Step 2: Documentation

Prepare technical documentation of your integration.
The documentation needs to include a basic API data flow diagram.

Step 3: Compliance Checklist

Ensure all data handling complies with legal and Inlet-specific requirements.
Verify that customer data is securely stored and transmitted.

4.2. Submitting for Certification

Complete and submit the certification request form.

4.3. Certification Review meeting

Step 1: Technical Evaluation

Inlet's team will assess the technical aspects of your integration.
You will need to demonstrate your integration with API calls, data validation, error handling, and performance.
Inlet will look at logs on their end to validate your data and compliance.
The Inlet team will verify that all customer data is properly validated and secured.

Step 2: Feedback and Corrections

If issues are found, you'll have to:
- Address all issues and resubmit any required information.
- Schedule a new certification review meeting.

Step 3: Approval

Upon successful review, you'll receive a certification approval.
Certification is valid for a specified period, after which re-certification may be required

Step 4: Re-approval

Inlet can ask you to re-certify once a year
Inlet may revoke your certification if your integration generates significant errors and you do not promptly address them.

5. Going Live

After certification, you're ready to onboard your first customer.

Step 1: Obtain Production Credentials

Request API credentials for your spesified customer.
Store these credentials securely and update your configuration.

Step 2: Final Testing

Perform a final round of testing on your first customer to make sure everything works as intended.
Ensure that all user journey you support work as expected.

Step 3: Monitoring

Set up monitoring tools to track the performance and health of your integration.
Implement alerting mechanisms for critical issues.

Step 4: Launch

Officially launch your integration to your customer base.
Communicate the new capabilities to users and provide support resources.

By following this guide meticulously, you'll ensure a smooth integration with Inlet, providing a secure and efficient service to your customers.

We look forward to a successful partnership!

/ The Inlet tech team

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