Tech Glossary

What is JSONP?

JSONP is a technology used to make cross-domain HTTP requests by loading external scripts. It stands for JSON with Padding and works by creating a dynamic <script> tag that loads JSON data from another domain. One of the advantages of JSONP is that it allows cross-domain communication, which is limited by the same-origin policy in browsers. By using JSONP, developers can retrieve data from other domains without having to implement CORS or server-side proxies. However, there are some security risks with JSONP, as it opens up potential attacks such as cross-site scripting (XSS). It is therefore important that users of JSONP are aware of the security aspects and implement appropriate safeguards to prevent unauthorized access to data. JSONP has been a popular technology in web development, but it has recently been replaced by more modern alternatives such as JSON with CORS (Cross- Origin Resource Sharing) and JSON Web Tokens (JWT). It is important for developers to be aware of the different options and choose the best method to securely and efficiently manage cross-domain communication on their websites.