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Spring Security 6 & JWT Authentication · Lesson

Scopes and Claims Enforcement

Enforce specific scopes and claims within incoming JWTs to control access to different parts of your API.

Scopes and Claims Enforcement is a free Spring Security 6 & JWT Authentication lesson on CoddyKit — lesson 3 of 4. You can read the complete lesson below for free — then practise it hands-on in the browser with a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor. It is part of the Spring Security 6 & JWT Authentication learning path, one of 4 lessons in the course, and your progress syncs across the web and the CoddyKit app.

Authorization with Scopes & Claims

Welcome! In this lesson, we'll learn how to control access to your API endpoints using scopes and claims in an OAuth2 Resource Server.

These are crucial components of a JSON Web Token (JWT) that tell your server who the user is and what they are allowed to do.

Understanding OAuth2 Scopes

Think of scopes as specific permissions or access rights that a client application requests on behalf of a user.

  • They are defined by the Resource Server.
  • Examples: read, write, profile, email.
  • When a user grants permission, these scopes are included in the issued JWT.

They define the "what" a client can do within the API.

JWT Claims Explained

Claims are pieces of information about the user or the token itself, stored as key-value pairs inside the JWT payload.

  • Standard Claims: sub (subject/user ID), exp (expiration time), iss (issuer).
  • Custom Claims: You can add your own data, like role, department, or user_id.

Claims provide context about "who" the user is and their specific attributes.

Spring Security & Scopes Mapping

When Spring Security processes an incoming JWT, it automatically extracts the scopes from the token.

It then converts these scopes into Spring Security authorities by prefixing them with SCOPE_.

For example, a scope read becomes an authority SCOPE_read, which can then be checked using expression language.

@PreAuthorize for Scopes

You can enforce scope-based authorization on your API methods using Spring Security's @PreAuthorize annotation.

This annotation allows you to define SpEL (Spring Expression Language) expressions that must evaluate to true for the method to be executed.

Use hasAuthority('SCOPE_<your_scope>') to check for a specific scope.

Scope Protection Demo

Let's see how to protect an endpoint using the SCOPE_read authority. Only tokens with the 'read' scope can access this resource.

package com.coddykit.security;

import org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication;
import org.springframework.boot.autoconfigure.SpringBootApplication;
import org.springframework.context.annotation.Bean;
import org.springframework.context.annotation.Configuration;
import org.springframework.security.config.annotation.method.configuration.EnableMethodSecurity;
import org.springframework.security.config.annotation.web.builders.HttpSecurity;
import org.springframework.security.web.SecurityFilterChain;
import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.GetMapping;
import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.RestController;
import org.springframework.security.access.prepost.PreAuthorize;

@SpringBootApplication
@EnableMethodSecurity // Enable @PreAuthorize
public class Main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    SpringApplication.run(Main.class, args);
  }
}

@Configuration
class SecurityConfig {
  @Bean
  SecurityFilterChain securityFilterChain(HttpSecurity http) throws Exception {
    http
      .authorizeHttpRequests(auth -> auth.anyRequest().authenticated())
      .oauth2ResourceServer(oauth2 -> oauth2.jwt(jwt -> {}))
      .csrf(csrf -> csrf.disable()); // For simplicity in demo
    return http.build();
  }
}

@RestController
class DataController {
  @GetMapping("/data/public")
  public String getPublicData() {
    return "This is public data (authenticated)";
  }

  @GetMapping("/data/secret")
  @PreAuthorize("hasAuthority('SCOPE_read')")
  public String getSecretData() {
    return "This is secret data, requires 'read' scope!";
  }
}

Leveraging Custom Claims

While scopes are great for general permissions, custom claims allow for more fine-grained or context-specific authorization.

For example, you might have a role claim with values like ADMIN or USER, or a department_id claim.

These claims are directly accessible from the authenticated principal in Spring Security, offering rich contextual data.

@PreAuthorize for Claims

You can also use @PreAuthorize to check for specific claims in the JWT payload.

Spring Security's SpEL allows you to access the authenticated principal's claims directly.

Use expressions like #oauth2.token.claims['role'] == 'ADMIN' or #oauth2.token.claims['department'] == 'IT'.

Claim Protection Demo

Here's an example of an endpoint protected by a custom role claim. Only users with role:ADMIN can access this sensitive data.

package com.coddykit.security;

import org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication;
import org.springframework.boot.autoconfigure.SpringBootApplication;
import org.springframework.context.annotation.Bean;
import org.springframework.context.annotation.Configuration;
import org.springframework.security.config.annotation.method.configuration.EnableMethodSecurity;
import org.springframework.security.config.annotation.web.builders.HttpSecurity;
import org.springframework.security.web.SecurityFilterChain;
import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.GetMapping;
import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.RestController;
import org.springframework.security.access.prepost.PreAuthorize;

@SpringBootApplication
@EnableMethodSecurity
public class Main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    SpringApplication.run(Main.class, args);
  }
}

@Configuration
class SecurityConfig {
  @Bean
  SecurityFilterChain securityFilterChain(HttpSecurity http) throws Exception {
    http
      .authorizeHttpRequests(auth -> auth.anyRequest().authenticated())
      .oauth2ResourceServer(oauth2 -> oauth2.jwt(jwt -> {}))
      .csrf(csrf -> csrf.disable());
    return http.build();
  }
}

@RestController
class AdminController {
  @GetMapping("/admin/report")
  @PreAuthorize("#oauth2.token.claims['role'] == 'ADMIN'")
  public String getAdminReport() {
    return "Sensitive admin report data!";
  }

  @GetMapping("/admin/dashboard")
  @PreAuthorize("hasAuthority('SCOPE_admin') and #oauth2.token.claims['department'] == 'IT'")
  public String getITAdminDashboard() {
    return "IT Department Admin Dashboard!";
  }
}

Quick Check: Scopes & Claims

Which of the following statements correctly describe the use of scopes and claims in Spring Security for an OAuth2 Resource Server?

Recap: Scopes & Claims

We've covered how scopes and claims are fundamental for authorization in an OAuth2 Resource Server.

  • Scopes define broad permissions (e.g., read, write).
  • Claims provide detailed user attributes (e.g., role, department).
  • Both can be enforced using @PreAuthorize with SpEL expressions.

Mastering these allows for robust and flexible access control in your APIs!

Frequently asked questions

Is the “Scopes and Claims Enforcement” lesson free?

Yes — the full text of “Scopes and Claims Enforcement” is free to read here on the web, and the Spring Security 6 & JWT Authentication course includes 4 lessons in total. To practise it interactively (a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor) and unlock the rest of the Spring Security 6 & JWT Authentication course, upgrade to CoddyKit PRO.

What will I learn in “Scopes and Claims Enforcement”?

Enforce specific scopes and claims within incoming JWTs to control access to different parts of your API. You practise Spring Security 6 & JWT Authentication with hands-on code you run directly in the browser, and a 24/7 AI tutor answers your questions as you work through the lesson.

Do I need any experience to start Spring Security 6 & JWT Authentication?

No prior experience is required. Spring Security 6 & JWT Authentication on CoddyKit is structured for beginners through advanced learners; this is — lesson 3 of 4, so you can start here or from the beginning and move at your own pace.

How long does the “Scopes and Claims Enforcement” lesson take?

Most CoddyKit lessons take about 5–10 minutes. Each one is bite-sized and interactive, so you make steady progress and pick up exactly where you left off across the web and the app.

Can I write and run code in this Spring Security 6 & JWT Authentication lesson?

Yes. Every Spring Security 6 & JWT Authentication lesson includes a built-in code editor, so you write and run real code right in your browser and get instant AI feedback — no local setup required.

All lessons in this course

  1. Resource Server Setup
  2. Decoding and Validating JWTs
  3. Scopes and Claims Enforcement
  4. Mapping JWT Claims to Spring Authorities
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