Spotify users trying to access the music streaming platform are running into trouble with ‘JWT is expired’.
Spotify is the leading streaming platform in Sweden. Spotify is always at the forefront in terms of trends, and helps fans to get tickets before the general public. It continues to attract millions of listeners every year.
But despite this, things don’t always run smoothly at the Spotify HQ.
Let’s take a look at the ‘JWT’ error that users are running into this April.
Spotify users run into ‘JWT is expired’ trouble
Some Spotify users are experiencing technical difficulties when trying to use the web-based version of Spotify.
When attempting to validate the token, users are presented with a blank page with the words: “JWT is expired.”
Now, for anyone who hasn’t run into this kind of problem before, you might be feeling stumped.
What does ‘JWT is expired’ mean?
A JSON Web Token (JWT) is a “compact, URL-safe means of representing claims to be transferred between two parties,” the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) Explained.
It is a standard that defines a secure way of transmitting information as JSON objects between two parties. Essentially, it is an authentication token to authenticate a device or application, in Spotify’s case.
Digitally-signed information can be verified and is trusted. A JWT is also digitally-signed, and therefore has an expiration. The reason for this is security. Unchanging JWT tokens are dangerous. If a never-expiring token is stolen, someone can always access the user’s data.
So, if you’ve come across the ‘JWT is expired’ page on Spotify, it just means that the JSON Web Token is out of date. The issue seems to affect primarily the Spotify website, since JWTs expiration is only affecting web applications and not native apps. Native apps never expire.
The Spotify web player will restart if it is not working.
The teams behind the scenes are working to find a solution for the increasing number of reports that Spotify has been down.
For those saying the Spotify web player is down, the Spotify Cares Twitter account suggested “restarting your browser” then checking if that fixes the problem. This might seem too simple, but it has worked for many people. There’s a reason it’s considered one of the oldest tricks in the book.
You can always check for problems on the streaming platform. Downdetector which gives updates on the status of Spotify’s services. Also, it is recommended to clear the cache on your device and use a different browser or app.
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