How To Fix 403 Forbidden Error In WordPress?

Everybody who invests time online has run over an HTTP status mistake at some point. Maybe a couple of them, in any case, is as baffling as getting an error message on Word Press site.  As it is very user-friendly CMS website software.  But it is annoying as well to get the continuous error message. The most well-known reason for the 403 Forbidden error blunder in WordPress is because of inadequately designed security plugins and another reason is a corrupt .htaccess file or incorrect file permissions on your server.

There are different ways to fix 403 forbidden errors in WordPress.  But the first thing is to create the WordPress backup for your website. Or, in case you are using an automatic WordPress backup plugin, ensure to access the latest backup. This bug generally happens due to the WordPress plugins, corrupt .htaccess file, or file permission in WordPress.

Fixing 403 Forbidden Error Caused by a WordPress Plugin

• The first thing you need to do is to deactivate all WordPress plugins temporarily. This includes any security plugins that you may have installed on your site.
• If this resolves your problem, then one of the plugins on your website was causing this error.
• You can figure out which plugin was causing the error by activating all your plugins one at a time until you can reproduce the 403 forbidden error.

Fix 403 Forbidden Error Caused by Corrupt .htaccess File.

• Often the 403 error is caused by a corrupt .htaccess file in your WordPress site. Repairing this file is quite easy.
• First, connect to your website using an FTP client or file manager in cPanel.
• Next, locate the .htaccess file in the root folder of your WordPress site. See this guide if you can’t find the .htaccess file in Your WordPress folder.
• You need to download the .htaccess file to your computer to have a fresh backup. After that, you need to delete the file from your server.
• Try accessing your website. If the 403 forbidden error is resolved, then this means that your .htaccess file was corrupt.
• You can generate a fresh—htaccess file by logging into your WordPress admin area and going to the Settings » Permalinks page.
• Simply click the Save Changes button at the bottom of the page, and WordPress will generate a fresh—htaccess file.

Fix 403 Forbidden Error Caused by File Permissions in WordPress

• All files stored on your website have file permissions, which control who can access files and folders on your website.
• Incorrect file permissions can cause 403 forbidden errors. It makes your web server think you cannot access those files.
• If the above two solutions do not solve the 403 forbidden error on your site, then incorrect file permissions can be the most likely cause.
• You can ask your WordPress hosting provider to check your website for correct file permissions. Some hosts are very supportive. They wouldn’t mind and will probably fix that for you.
• Changing file permissions yourself can have serious consequences. If you do not feel confident doing it yourself, ask a friend for help or hire a professional.
• However, if you want to do it yourself, here is how to check your file permissions.
• Simply connect to your WordPress site using an FTP client. Navigate to the root folder containing all your WordPress files.
• Click to select a folder, right-click and then select File Permissions from the menu.
• Your FTP client will show you a file permissions dialog box like this:
• All folders on your WordPress site should have a file permission of 744 or 755.
• All files on your WordPress site should have a file permission of 644 or 640.
• You can set the file permission to the root folder to 744 or 755. Check the box next to ‘Recurse into subdirectories’ and then check the option that says ‘apply to directories only.’
• Click on the OK button. Your FTP client will start setting permissions to all subdirectories in that folder.
• Once done, you must repeat the process for all the files. This time you will use file permission of 644 or 640, and don’t forget to select ‘Recurse into subdirectories’ and ‘apply to files only.’ options.
• Click the OK button, and your FTP client will start setting file permissions for all the selected files.
• Try accessing your website now; the 403 forbidden error should be gone now.

Hope you found this guide helpful and that you can solve your “WordPress 403 error” problem. Have you figured out any other way to eliminate this 403-forbidden WordPress problem? Please share your solutions with us in the provided comment section below. I am sure, it will be beneficial for others who are facing similar issues.