Data plane proxy with an embedded open policy agent for microservices applications

A system comprising:

• an application control plane;
• and
• a microservice architecture application comprising a plurality of services that interact to perform an overall application function, each of the plurality of services being an application program interface (API) performing a piecemeal function of the overall application function,
• wherein a service of the plurality of services comprises a data plane proxy that is communicatively coupled to the application control plane,
• wherein the service is configured to receive (a) a request for access or utilization of the service and (b) a token associated with the request,
• wherein the data plane proxy comprises an embedded software module that is configured to determine whether to authorize the request, and
• wherein the application control plane is configured to receive, from the data plane proxy, a decision authorizes or rejects the request.

A method of authorizing requests in a microservices architecture application comprising a plurality of services, each of the plurality of services being an application program interface (API) performing a piecemeal function of an overall application function, the method comprising:

• receiving, by a service of the plurality of services, (a) a request for access or utilization of the service and (b) a token associated with the request, wherein the service comprises a data plane proxy
• determining, by an embedded software module in the data plane proxy, whether to authorize the request;
• and
• transmitting, based on the determining, a decision that authorizes or rejects the request.