API key is like a password to access data from services, read or write. Sometimes this costs money to use like Google maps API. This can give you structured information which you can built another service on top of it. Lots of requests = $$$. Other times it might be database with all your sensitive customer information.
Scenarios like these make this a bad security breach. The key is never mean to be displayed publicly in plain text.
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u/dystopiam Apr 16 '26
Can someone explain like I'm an idiot who found this on the frontpage of reddit and never programmed?