What do Access Keys consist of in AWS?

Access keys in AWS are critical for programmatic access to your AWS services. They consist of two components: an access key ID and a secret access key. The access key ID is a unique identifier that allows AWS to recognize who is making the request, while the secret access key is used to sign the requests you send to AWS services, confirming that the requests are indeed made by the owner of the access key.

These components are especially important for users interacting with AWS through the command line, SDKs, or API calls. The access key ID and secret access key work together to authenticate and authorize the requests, enabling secure and controlled access to AWS resources.

Other options do not represent access keys accurately. A username and password are used for console login, not for programmatic access. A certificate and key pair pertain to SSH access or SSL/TLS communication rather than API access. An API endpoint and a token might relate to certain API calls but do not define an AWS access key.