# AWS adds API key authentication for CloudWatch traces

_Published Wednesday, November 4, 2026 at 7:06 PM EST · Infrastructure · Latest · Tier 2 — Notable_

AWS says Amazon CloudWatch now accepts API keys for sending OpenTelemetry traces to the AWS X-Ray OTLP traces endpoint. Clients that can set an Authorization header can use bearer tokens instead of signing requests with AWS Signature Version 4, extending access to workloads on premises, in other clouds, and in tools that support only static authorization headers.

The option is available in all commercial AWS Regions with the endpoint. Both authentication methods provide the same CloudWatch capabilities. AWS still recommends Signature Version 4, which remains the default for AWS Distro for OpenTelemetry SDKs.

## Sources

- [Recent Announcements](https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2026/11/amazon-cloudwatch-api-keys-opentelemetry/)

---
Canonical: https://techandbusiness.org/newswire/WkQw5FoAgkhCj3-grUFI83
Published: 2026-11-05T00:06:00.379Z
Story chronology: 2026-11-03T08:00:00.000Z
Retrieved: 2026-11-05T02:57:31.080Z
Publisher: Tech & Business (techandbusiness.org)