What Is 401 Error Unauthorized Access? – Fixes
Table of Contents
Trying to access a website and being greeted with “401 error unauthorized” access can leave many people frustrated. It is an HTTP error response code that can happen for numerous reasons. The lack of clarity on the cause makes it a very inconvenient error to come across.
This guide will give a breakdown of the causes of “401 error unauthorized access” and the steps you can take to try and fix the problem.
What Is 401 Error Unauthorized Access?
Error code 401 occurs when the user request cannot be authenticated because they don’t have the required credentials and the webpage has thus denied access. If you come across error code 401 then the problem is client-side.
401 Error Unauthorized Access – Causes
Outdated browser cookies and cache
A common reason for this error to occur is due to the browser having outdated cookies and cache preventing the authorization from occurring.
Incorrect URL
An incorrect URL from an outdated link can cause an error to occur.
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Plugins
Sometimes browser plugins or your computer’s firewall can report legitimate access attempts as malicious and prevent them from accessing the site.
401 Error Unauthorized Access – Fixes
Step
Outdated browser cookies and cache
Browser cookies and caches are designed to improve the user experience, but sometimes they can cause unexpected issues to occur. to fix this issue you will want to clear your browsing history, for different browsers the steps will be slightly different.
Google Chrome
- Click the three dots on the top right hand side
- Select ‘history’
- Then click clear browsing history and make sure cookies and cache are selected
Other browsers will have a slight variation on this procedure but will follow the basic steps.
Step
Incorrect URL
One of the simplest fixes is to make sure that the URL is correct. Check to ensure that the URL was typed incorrectly. Additionally, the link followed may be out of date and lead to a part of the website that no longer exists. To try and fix the issue with an incorrect link you can try to access the page directly from the website.
Step
Plugin interference
Certain plugins, especially security plugins and extensions can cause error code 401 to occur. By disabling or removing them you can usually resolve the issue.
Final Thoughts
In summary, the 401 error occurs when there is trouble authenticating the user’s credentials, although it can be frustrating the fix is usually a simple one. By following the how-to steps in this article hopefully, the issue is resolvable.
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