Resolving “Insufficient Permissions” Errors When Connecting to Google Search Console

When integrating SEO Booster with your Google Search Console (GSC) account, you might encounter an error stating:

Invalid data received from Google Search Console API: Missing ‘rows’ key in response. Data preview: {“error”:{“code”:403,”message”:”User does not have sufficient permission for site…”}}

This error indicates that your Google account lacks the necessary permissions to access the specified property via the GSC API.

Understanding Google Search Console Permissions

Google Search Console offers different levels of access:

• Owner: Full control over properties; can add or remove users and configure settings.
• Full User: Access to most data and settings but cannot add or remove users.
• Restricted User: Limited access to data; cannot view all reports or settings.

While the GSC web interface allows users with various access levels to view site data, accessing this data programmatically through the API requires Owner or Full User permissions. Users with Restricted access cannot retrieve data via the API.

Steps to Grant Appropriate Permissions

1. Go to Google Search Console and sign in with your Google account.
2. Select the property (website) you’re trying to access.
3. Click on the settings icon (⚙️) in the sidebar and choose Users and permissions.
4. Ensure your account is listed with Owner or Full User permissions. If not, request the property owner to grant you the necessary access.

Verifying Property Ownership

If you don’t have access to the property, you can verify ownership using one of the following methods:

• HTML file upload
• HTML meta tag
• DNS record
• Google Analytics tracking code
• Google Tag Manager container snippet

Detailed instructions for each verification method are available in the Google Search Console Help Center.

After Updating Permissions

Once you’ve been granted the appropriate permissions or verified ownership:

1. Return to the SEO Booster plugin in your WordPress dashboard.
2. Navigate to the plugin’s settings and re-authenticate with your Google account.
3. Attempt to fetch data from Google Search Console again.

If you continue to experience issues, please contact our support team with details of the error message and the steps you’ve taken.