I've been accessing my government's website weekly to check my student account, which has vital information. Up until three days ago, everything was working perfectly. But now, every time I try to open the site, I keep getting a "403 Forbidden" error on different browsers—Brave, Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and even Microsoft Edge. I don't use a VPN, and I've turned off all ad blockers and pop-up blockers to no avail. Interestingly, my friend tried to access it from another country and had no issues. I really need to log in, so any help would be appreciated!
4 Answers
A 403 error usually indicates an authentication issue. You might want to check if there's any support contact for the website to get clarity on what's happening.
Try using a different web browser or accessing it via mobile data instead of your Wi-Fi. Sometimes network issues can lead to these errors.
You may need to use a VPN focused on that specific area. I faced a similar issue when trying to access a local council site in England—it only worked with a regional IP address.
But it was working fine just a week ago without any problems!
Have you tried restarting your router? That can help reset your IP. Also, give incognito mode a shot in any of those browsers—sometimes it makes a difference. I've heard some people in the UK are facing similar problems with government sites, so you're not alone!
I actually tried multiple browsers on different devices, but I'm still stuck at the 403 error.