407 Proxy Authentication Required

407

Proxy Authentication Required

Example HTTP Response

HTTP Response

HTTP/1.1 407 Proxy Authentication Required
Proxy-Authenticate: Basic realm="Proxy"

Common Causes

Corporate proxy requiring login
Proxy credentials expired
Missing proxy authentication

Technical Details

What does this mean?

The middleman needs ID too! Before reaching your destination, you need to prove yourself to the proxy server.

Technical Definition

The client must first authenticate itself with the proxy.

RFC Says

"The 407 (Proxy Authentication Required) status code is similar to 401 (Unauthorized), but it indicates that the client needs to authenticate itself in order to use a proxy. The proxy MUST send a Proxy-Authenticate header field containing a challenge applicable to that proxy for the target resource."

Plain English:

407 means 'You need to log in to the proxy server first.' Unlike 401 which is about authenticating with the destination server, 407 is specifically about authenticating with an intermediate proxy server that sits between you and the destination.

Common Misinterpretation

Don't confuse 407 with 401. Use 407 only when a proxy server needs authentication, not when your application server needs it. Most developers will never need to return 407 since it's specific to proxy server implementations.

View RFC Documentation

Code Snippets

Ready-to-use code for returning this HTTP status in your application:

Node.js

// Express.js
app.get('/example', (req, res) => {
  res.status(407).json({
    error: 'Proxy Authentication Required',
    message: 'Your error message here'
  });
});

// Native HTTP
const http = require('http');

http.createServer((req, res) => {
  res.writeHead(407, { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' });
  res.end(JSON.stringify({
    error: 'Proxy Authentication Required',
    message: 'Your error message here'
  }));
}).listen(3000);

Related Status Codes

🔐401Unauthorized 🚫403Forbidden

407 Proxy Authentication Required FAQ

What causes a 407 Proxy Authentication Required error?

Corporate proxy requiring login. Proxy credentials expired. Missing proxy authentication.

// Express.js app.get('/example', (req, res) => { res.status(407).json({ error: 'Proxy Authentication Required', message: 'Your error message here' }); }); // Native HTTP const http = require('http'); http.createServer((req, res) => { res.writeHead(407, { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' }); res.end(JSON.stringify({ error: 'Proxy Authentication Required', message: 'Your error message here' })); }).listen(3000);