How do I fix the GoDaddy 403 Error when using Matomo for WordPress?

Note: This applies to you if you are hosting your WordPress website on GoDaddy and you are using the Matomo for WordPress plugin. It does not apply to you if you are using the Connect Matomo plugin or in case you are using Matomo On-Premise or Matomo Cloud.

For security reasons, the GoDaddy WordPress hoster has updated their server configuration in 2021. As a result, when you click on the “Matomo Analytics -> Reporting” link in the WordPress admin dashboard, then this link results in an “403 error” page now. There is no security issue with the plugin itself. However, GoDaddy blocks access to specific files that our plugin requires.

The tracking still works, and you can still get various insights through the “Matomo Analytics -> Summary” page. However, more detailed reports in the dedicated Matomo reporting UI won’t be accessible. If you require the full Matomo reporting UI to work, then there is no workaround to fix this issue except for changing your site to a different WordPress hoster.

We are hoping to fix this issue in the future and we keep track of this problem in issue #339.