thread Issue with Viewing Invoice PDFs in Square Without Authentication in Payments Troubleshooting

Issue with Viewing Invoice PDFs in Square Without Authentication

aZticot — Sat, 20 Sep 2025 06:55:42 GMT

I am implementing a "View Invoice PDF" feature on my webpage, allowing users to access their invoice PDFs via the following Square Sandbox URL:

https://app.squareupsandbox.com/invoices/{invoiceId}/attachments/pdf?inline=true

Currently, this functionality works if I am logged into the Square Dashboard on the same browser. However, when accessed from a different browser or by an unauthenticated user, the following authentication error occurs:

{
  "errors": [
    {
      "category": "AUTHENTICATION_ERROR",
      "code": "UNAUTHORIZED",
      "detail": "This request could not be authorized."
    }
  ]
}

This prevents users from viewing and downloading their invoice PDFs unless they are logged into Square. Is there a way to resolve this issue, or is authentication a strict requirement for accessing invoice attachments?

Best regards,

Re: Issue with Viewing Invoice PDFs in Square Without Authentication

Summer2024 — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 15:01:24 GMT

Hi @aZticot !

My recommendation would be to ask this question over in the Square Developer's Forum. Most of the moderators here are not super familiar with coding or APIs.

I think one of my friends @JTPets may have some insight, but not sure.

Sorry i could not be of more assistance, but the developer's forum will probably get you set in the right direction.

Re: Issue with Viewing Invoice PDFs in Square Without Authentication

JTPets — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 15:03:25 GMT

I am not a developer and I have very little code skill myself. However it appears that you are using the sandbox which is for testing and not live production.

Change your urls and ensure you use a production api key and url

Re: Issue with Viewing Invoice PDFs in Square Without Authentication

JTPets — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 15:46:05 GMT

I use AI for a lot of my own Square API issues, here is what the AI says as an additional reply:

The issue here is that Square's invoice PDF URLs are not publicly accessible and require authentication to view. This means:

Authentication Required: The URL only works if the user is logged into Square with an account that has permission to view the invoice.
Sandbox vs. Production: Even in the Square Sandbox environment, authentication is enforced.
No Public Sharing: Unlike some other platforms that generate temporary public links, Square's invoice PDFs are restricted to authorized users.

Possible Solutions:

1. Use Square's API to Fetch the Invoice PDF

Instead of relying on a direct URL, use Square’s API to fetch the invoice details and generate a downloadable PDF.
You may need to proxy the request through your server if you want to offer the PDF to non-authenticated users.

2. Generate a Temporary Link

If public sharing is required, consider using a cloud storage service (AWS S3, Google Drive, etc.) to store and serve the PDFs after fetching them via Square’s API.

3. Embed a Secure Login Mechanism

If your users should have access, authenticate them via OAuth to allow them to fetch their invoices.

Re: Issue with Viewing Invoice PDFs in Square Without Authentication

Summer2024 — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 16:56:16 GMT

I appreciate you @JTPets !