Error messages

Unauthorized request. User is unauthorized

Unauthorized request. User is unauthorized

Every chat or agent request fails at once with a pop-up like this:

Unauthorized request. User is unauthorized
Request ID: ed8f8c04-4983-4013-bbaf-0fe52273edf5

If you open the details you get the error itself. This one was pasted on the Cursor forum on September 14, 2026 from Cursor 3.16.29 on Linux:

{"error":"ERROR_UNAUTHORIZED","details":{"title":"Unauthorized request.","detail":"User is unauthorized","isRetryable":false,"additionalInfo":{},"buttons":[],"planChoices":[],"analyticsMetadata":{"actionRequired":"login"}},"isExpected":true}

The "actionRequired":"login" part is why the obvious move is to sign out and back in. For most people it doesn't help. The two oldest forum threads on this error, both from January 21, 2025, have 26,633 and 8,420 views as of September 26, 2026.

Why a paid account gets "User is unauthorized"

Usually it's the clock on your computer. Cursor's servers check the time your machine reports, and a staff reply in April 2026 said "our backend rejects requests when the clock drift is too large as a security measure." In June another staffer wrote that "in 99% of cases, this error with an active Pro plan is caused by a system clock mismatch."

The drift doesn't have to be dramatic. One reply in May said "even a couple hours of drift can trigger this error". Cases staff diagnosed ranged from 45 minutes behind in 2025 to 21 days behind in July 2026, and about seven weeks in September. In the July case the proof was sitting in the user's own screenshot, whose file name said July 6 even though it was posted on July 27. Git kept working on that Mac because, as staff put it, "it doesn't check your clock."

This also explains why reinstalling, clearing app data or logging out again gets nowhere. None of those touch the system clock.

How to fix the clock

• Windows: Settings > Time & language > Date & time, turn on Set time automatically, press Sync now and check the time zone.
• macOS: System Settings > General > Date & Time, turn on "Set time and date automatically", then check the date really changed to today.
• Linux: close Cursor, run sudo timedatectl set-ntp true, then run timedatectl and look for "System clock synchronized: yes".
• Quit Cursor fully (no leftover processes), open it and send a prompt.

If the date won't correct, or jumps back after a reboot, staff named the usual culprits in September: "a flat CMOS battery, a VM/container restoring an old snapshot, or a network blocking NTP (UDP 123)". NTP is the protocol computers use to fetch the time. On a managed work laptop you may need IT to allow it.

When the clock is right

Staff suggest signing out properly (Ctrl+Shift+P, then Cursor: Sign Out) and back in, because an expired sign-in token can cause it too. The heavier step from a March 2026 reply is to sign out, close every Cursor process, back up and delete the app data folder (%APPDATA%\Cursor on Windows, ~/Library/Application Support/Cursor on a Mac), then sign in again. Using the Cursor CLI? agent status shows whether it thinks you're logged in.

Back in early 2025 the same message also meant a blocked account. Cursor was refusing accounts bought from third-party resellers, sign-ups with temporary email addresses, some VPN providers and whole teams "blocked due to abuse". Since May 2025 staff have said those cases go to hi@cursor.com, not the forum, so if your clock checks out, email them with the Request ID.