Menu
Article Case Studies

python requests cert and key

Narkw Brahma

Narkw Brahma

• 2 min read

Python Requests Cert and Key

If you are working with secure websites or APIs that require SSL/TLS authentication, you need to provide a certificate and key with your Python Requests. A certificate is a digital document that confirms the identity of a website or server, while a key helps to secure your communication with the website or server.

How to specify a certificate and key in Python Requests

To specify a certificate and key in Python Requests, you need to use the cert parameter. The cert parameter accepts a tuple containing the path to the certificate file and key file respectively. Here's an example:


import requests

cert_path = ('/path/to/cert.pem', '/path/to/key.pem')
response = requests.get('https://example.com', cert=cert_path)

In the above example, we are importing the requests module and defining the path to our certificate and key files. We then make a secure HTTP GET request to https://example.com and pass the cert parameter with our tuple of certificate and key paths.

Using a certificate store in Python Requests

If you have multiple certificates and keys, you can store them in a directory and pass the directory path as the value of the cert parameter. Here's an example:


import requests

cert_dir = '/path/to/certs'
response = requests.get('https://example.com', cert=(cert_dir+'/cert.pem', cert_dir+'/key.pem'))

In the above example, we are defining the path to a directory containing multiple certificates and keys. We then make a secure HTTP GET request to https://example.com and pass the cert parameter with the path to our certificate and key files concatenated with the directory path.

Using a client certificate in Python Requests

If you need to use a client certificate to authenticate with a server, you can specify it in Python Requests using the cert parameter. Here's an example:


import requests

client_cert_path = '/path/to/client/cert.pem'
client_key_path = '/path/to/client/key.pem'
response = requests.get('https://example.com', cert=(client_cert_path, client_key_path))

In the above example, we are defining the path to our client certificate and key files. We then make a secure HTTP GET request to https://example.com and pass the cert parameter with our tuple of client certificate and key paths.

Conclusion

In conclusion, when working with secure websites or APIs that require SSL/TLS authentication, you need to provide a certificate and key with your Python Requests. You can specify a certificate and key using the cert parameter, either as a tuple or by pointing to a directory containing multiple certificates and keys. You can also use a client certificate to authenticate with a server by passing the cert parameter with your tuple of client certificate and key paths.

Share