# Support

We're here to help you build with Charity Navigator data.

## Contact

- **API questions and data issues** — [Submit a support request](https://cnapisupport.paperform.co/) with your account email, the query you ran, and the response you received.
- **Attribution and licensing** — See the [Attribution Guidelines](/attribution) first; for anything not covered there, [submit a support request](https://cnapisupport.paperform.co/).

## Common Questions

### Authentication & Errors

- **What should I do if my API key is compromised?**
  Roll your API key immediately from your [My Subscriptions](/subscriptions) page or submit a support request if you need manual key invalidation.

- **Why am I receiving a 401 Unauthorized or 403 Forbidden error?**
  Check that your Authorization request header contains your exact API key without trailing spaces or missing headers.

- **Why am I receiving `429` responses?**
  You have exceeded the rate limit of 1,000 calls per minute. A `429` always
  means the rate limit — an exhausted monthly quota returns `403` instead. See
  [Usage & Quotas](/plans#rate-limit).

- **Where do I report incorrect data about an organization?**
  [Submit a support request](https://cnapisupport.paperform.co/) with the EIN and the field in question; our research team reviews every report.

### Data & Ratings Logic

- **How often is charity rating data updated in the API?**
  Ratings update every two months and alerts update on a weekly basis.

- **Can I cache the data?**
  Yes — licensees may cache responses to stay within quota, but cached ratings should be refreshed at least monthly so alerts and rating changes are reflected promptly.

- **Why is a charity's rating missing?**
  Ratings are suppressed while an organization carries an active alert, and not every organization has been rated yet. Check `highest_level_alert` on the `publicSearchFaceted` results to see whether an alert is the reason.

### Account & Plan Management

- **How do I upgrade or change my pricing plan as my platform grows?**
  You can review plan thresholds on the [Pricing](/pricing) page. Submit an upgrade request on your [My Subscriptions](/subscriptions) page or [submit a support request](https://cnapisupport.paperform.co/).

- **What happens if I temporarily spike over my plan's rate limit?**
  Requests exceeding 1,000 calls per minute receive a 429 Too Many Requests status code. Implement exponential backoff or caching to handle rate limits.

### Compliance & Branding

- **Do I need to display the Charity Navigator logo when using this data?**
  Yes, platforms displaying ratings or advisories must adhere to the [Attribution Guidelines](/attribution), including displaying approved badges and standard disclaimer text.