---
title: "403 Forbidden Error"
description: "There are many different types of errors that can happen when building a website. One of the more common ones is the 403 Forbidden Error. Here we discuss this error and what you can do about it. The..."
url: https://www.inmotionhosting.com/support/website/error-numbers/403-forbidden-error/
date: 2011-09-19
modified: 2018-11-30
author: "Brad Markle"
categories: ["Website Error Numbers"]
type: post
lang: en
---

# 403 Forbidden Error

There are many different types of errors that can happen when building a website. One of the more common ones is the *403 Forbidden Error*. Here we discuss this error and what you can do about it.

The two most common causes of a “**403 Forbidden**” error are:

- **Incorrect File Permissions**
- **“No Index” in .htaccess file is improperly used**

## Correcting a 403 Forbidden Error

1. First, you will want to **check the file permissions** that each of your files has set. If a file or folder is set to “**777**” which is “**world**” writable for security reasons the 403 error will be displayed to protect your website from hacks. Folders should have the permissions set to “**750**” or “755” and files should be set to “644”
2. Once you have verified all the permissions are correct and the issue still persists, you will need to **check your .htaccess file**. Please keep in mind that you can have multiple .htaccess files in your account, so you may need to search / modify .htaccess files other than public_html/.htaccess. For example, if you have an addon domain located at public_html/addon_domain, you’ll need to check any .htaccess files within that folder as well. If one of the lines in the actual file says “**Options All -Indexes**” then simply** remove “-Indexes”** and **save the file**.

At this point if the issue still persists please [contact support for further assistance](/support/amp/how-to-get-great-technical-support/) in diagnosing the 403 forbidden error message.