# Quick Start

Once you have an API key and secret, the recommended first call is `GET /v1/account`. It is not billed against any product, works for every active key, and returns the account environment, products and current balance. This lets you confirm three things before going any further: that your credentials work, that you are pointed at the expected environment, and that the products you intend to use are enabled.

## 1. Make your first call

```bash
curl -H "Authorization: Bearer <your-api-key>|<your-api-secret>" \
     https://portal.watcheye.com.au/api/v1/account
```

A successful response looks like:

```json
{
  "data": {
    "uuid": "7a1f0c8e-2b9f-4f0e-8d1a-1e2b3c4d5e6f",
    "account_name": "Sample Account",
    "environment": "live",
    "balance": "1234.5678",
    "credit_limit": "100.0000",
    "available_credit": "1334.5678",
    "products": [
      { "name": "pep_sanction_check", "label": "PEP and Sanction Check" }
    ]
  },
  "api_reference": "9a4b1c8e-2f63-4f9a-9f3a-9b1f5a7c2d4f"
}
```

If you get `401 Unauthorized`, double-check the `Authorization` header format (`Bearer <key>|<secret>`, separated by a pipe character) and that any IP restrictions on the key include the address you are calling from. See [Common error responses](/docs/reference/general/common-error-responses) for the 401 messages.

## 2. Confirm the environment

`data.environment` is either `live` or `sandbox`. Calls made with a key on a sandbox account are not billed; calls made with a key on a live account are. Sandbox and live are separate accounts with separate keys - see [Sandbox](/docs/guides/watcheye_api/sandbox) for how to use them in your integration test cycle.

## 3. Confirm your product entitlements

Each entry in `data.products` is a billable operation your account is entitled to call. If you intend to run PEP & Sanction checks, look for `pep_sanction_check`; for business screening, look for `business_check`; for identity verification, look for the per-document-type entries you need. A missing entry typically surfaces later as `403 No access` on the corresponding launch endpoint - resolve it with your Global Data account manager before continuing.

## 4. Where to go next

Common follow-on calls for a new integration:

- List your programs: `GET /v1/programs`
- Create your first entity: `POST /v1/programs/{program_uuid}/entities`
- Launch a screening check against the entity: `POST /v1/entities/{entity_uuid}/checks`
- Poll the check result: `GET /v1/checks/{check_uuid}`
- Review the audit log of every API call you have made: `GET /v1/audits`

Before you write code against these, skim [API Conventions](/docs/guides/watcheye_api/api-conventions) and [List Endpoint Conventions](/docs/guides/watcheye_api/list-endpoint-conventions) - they describe the field-naming, pagination, filter and sort rules that apply uniformly to every endpoint, so each operation's reference only has to describe what is specific to it.