How To Fix Blocked Due to Access Forbidden (403) Error in Google Search Console

Blocked due to access forbidden (403) is a Google Search Console status. It means that some of your pages aren’t indexed because your website denied Googlebot access to them. 

To crawl a page, Google must behave similarly to the user’s browser. Googlebot sends a request regarding the URL to your server. Servers respond to such requests with HTTP status codes, which tell browsers and crawlers if and how they can access the contents of that URL. 403 error happens when Googlebot doesn't get access to your web pages.

This isn’t typical, so this status could be a signal that your website requires a technical review.

What is the meaning of the 403 Forbidden Error?

The HTTP status code '403 Forbidden — you lack permission to access this resource appears when a web server acknowledges a user's request but cannot grant further access. This error commonly arises due to insufficient permissions or authentication credentials on the server side.

What triggers the 403 Forbidden Error?

HTTP 403 Forbidden errors typically stem from a client-side configuration issue, making them usually resolvable independently. One prevalent cause of a 403 Forbidden error is the configuration settings for a particular folder or file. These settings dictate which users can read, write, or execute that folder or file.

The two most likely causes of the 403 Forbidden Error are:

1. Corrupt .htaccess file
2. Incorrect file permissions
3. Wrong IP address
4. Faulty Plugins 

It’s also possible that you’re seeing the error because of an issue with a plugin on your site. In this article, we’ll show you how to troubleshoot these potential issues.

How to Verify the Error Is Correct & Accurate

We first need to verify whether the warning served in your page indexing report is correct and that we need to fix something.

To do this, you can go to the Indexly page inspection tab and enter the URL details to see if Indexly is displaying the same error. Inspection Page UI will look like this

How to Fix Blocked Due to Access Forbidden (403)?

Below section, we discuss the problems and solutions to the errors that cause the 403 error.

1. Errors in .htaccess file

The .htaccess file provides configuration changes to your server when using shared hosting. Typically, your Content Management System creates it automatically.

Deactivate the old .htaccess file and create a new one. Next, crawl your pages with a Googlebot user agent to see your website from its perspective and ensure the problem disappears.

2. Incorrect File Permissions

Each folder and file on your site’s server has their unique file permissions that control who can:

• Read – see the data in the file/view the contents of a folder.
• Write – modify the file/add or delete files inside a folder
• Execute – run the file and/or execute it as a script/access a folder and perform functions and commands.

These permissions are indicated by a 3-digit number, with each digit indicating the permission levels for each of the 3 categories above.

Normally, these permissions just “work” for your site. When you are dependent on cloud blogging services like WordPress, the file permissions get changed. The ideal file permissions for WordPress are:

• Files  – 644 or 640
• Directories – 755 or 750

If file permissions issues were causing the 403 Forbidden Error, after fixing the above permissions, your site should now start working again.

3. Wrong IP Address

The error may occur if your domain name points to the wrong IP address. Verify your A record for your website and check if it is pointing to the correct IP address.

If the 403 error arrived after moving to Cloudflare, it could eventually be because your web server is blocking access to certain IP addresses

For cloud providers like Hostinger, The 403 Forbidden error can occur if your domain points to an incorrect IP address, denying you access even with valid credentials. To prevent this error, ensure your domain points to your hosting provider's IP address.

4. Faulty Plugins

Sometimes (not often though) a WordPress or Ghost plugin might have messed up your site causing the 403 Forbidden error. Manually deactivating the plugins and checking if the site is working is the way forward in this case.

Conclusion

• "Blocked due to access forbidden (403)" errors occur when Google bots do not have access to your website pages.
• Investigating .htaccess file, A record, plugins and website directory permissions can solve your indexing issues quickly.
• A solid technical analysis of your website every month can help prevent these errors.

Supercharge your SEO with Indexly

It usually takes a few weeks for a Google bot to crawl and index your website's pages. However, Indexly can simplify this process by automatically checking your sitemaps, finding new pages, and submitting them to Google Search Console.

This reduces human effort and errors and significantly improves indexing time. When your website's pages are indexed, they rank higher on search engines, ultimately boosting organic traffic.

Log in to Indexly with your Google account and set up your website for auto-indexing now!