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"insufficient_scope" Error when Making a Request to an OAuth or Management Endpoint
Okta Classic Engine
Okta Identity Engine
API Access Management
Overview

This article explains why an endpoint protected by an OAuth Access Token returns the following error:

 

403 insufficient_scope

 

Applies To
Cause

When making a request to an endpoint that supports Bearer token authentication (for example, /oauth2/v1/userinfo or /api/v1/users), an insufficient_scope error can be returned in the www-authenticate header when the token that was used was not granted the required scope to access that resource.

Example error returned in the www-authenticate response header:

www-authenticate: Bearer authorization_uri="http://subdomain.okta.com/oauth2/v1/authorize", realm="http://subdomain.okta.com", scope="openid", error="insufficient_scope", error_description="The access token provided does not contain the required scopes.", resource="/oauth2/v1/userinfo"
Solution

Within the www-authenticate response header, the error will indicate what scope is required to access the requested endpoint. For example, if making a call to /oauth2/v1/userinfo, the Access Token used must be granted the `openid` scope, while a request to /api/v1/groups requires the 'okta.groups.read` or `okta.groups.manage` scope.

When requesting a token to use against an endpoint secured by OAuth, ensure that the client includes the necessary scope in its /authorize or /token request.

 

Related References

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"insufficient_scope" Error when Making a Request to an OAuth or Management Endpoint