How to Fix “Scrape Key Check Failed” Error in WordPress Theme Editor

The WordPress theme editor is a powerful tool that allows you to customize your website’s theme without editing code directly. However, sometimes when trying to save changes via the theme editor, you may encounter the “Scrape key check failed” error. This error can be frustrating, but there are several steps you can take to fix it. In this tutorial, we will show you how to fix the “Scrape key check failed” error in WordPress theme editor, including the step of deleting the object-cache.php file, which is the most effective solution.

Step 1: Clear your browser cache and cookies

Clear your browser cache and cookies by going to your browser settings and selecting the option to clear your cache and cookies. This step will help resolve the issue if it is caused by your browser cache or cookies. Here’s how to do it:

1. Open your browser and click on the three dots in the upper right-hand corner of the window.
2. Click on “Settings” from the drop-down menu.
3. Scroll down to the “Privacy and security” section.
4. Click on “Clear browsing data”.
5. In the dialog box that appears, choose “All time” from the drop-down menu.
6. Check the boxes next to “Cookies and other site data” and “Cached images and files”.
7. Click “Clear data”.

Step 2: Disable security plugins temporarily

Some security plugins may block access to the theme editor. To test if the issue is caused by a security plugin, disable all security plugins temporarily. Follow the steps below to disable security plugins:

1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard.
2. Click on “Plugins” from the left-hand menu.
3. Find your security plugin in the list and click “Deactivate”.
4. Try saving changes via the theme editor again to see if the issue is resolved.
5. Don’t forget to reactivate the security plugin once you’re done.

Step 3: Increase the PHP memory limit

If your PHP memory limit is too low, it can cause the scrape key check to fail. To increase the PHP memory limit, follow these steps:

1. Log in to your website’s cPanel.
2. Click on “File Manager”.
3. Navigate to the root directory of your WordPress installation (usually public_html).
4. Find the wp-config.php file and right-click on it.
5. Click on “Edit”.
6. Add the following line of code to the file, just before the line that says “/* That's all, stop editing! Happy blogging. */“:

define( 'WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '256M' );
Code language: PHP (php)

Step 4: Check for conflicting plugins

Deactivate all plugins by going to the Plugins section in your WordPress dashboard, selecting all plugins, and clicking the Deactivate button. This step will help you determine if the issue is caused by a conflicting plugin.

1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard.
2. Click on “Plugins” from the left-hand menu.
3. Deactivate all plugins.
4. Try saving changes via the theme editor again to see if the issue is resolved.
5. If the issue is resolved, reactivate each plugin one by one until you find the one causing the conflict.

Step 5: Delete the object-cache.php file

If none of the previous steps work, you can try deleting the object-cache.php file. This file is a caching mechanism used by WordPress to speed up your website by reducing the number of database queries. Deleting this file will disable the caching mechanism temporarily, allowing you to save changes made via the WordPress theme editor. However, deleting the file will also disable any caching plugin you have installed, which means that your website may slow down temporarily until the file is recreated.

To delete the object-cache.php file, follow these steps:

1. Log in to your website via FTP or cPanel File Manager.
2. Navigate to the wp-content folder.
3. Locate the object-cache.php file and right-click on it.
4. Click on “Delete”.
5. Try saving changes via the theme editor again to see if the issue is resolved.

Keep in mind that deleting the object-cache.php file will temporarily disable any caching plugin you have installed, which means that your website may slow down until the file is recreated.

That’s it! If you encounter the “Scrape key check failed” error in the WordPress theme editor, deleting the object-cache.php file proves to be the most effective solution. Before considering this option, you can try various other methods. Clearing your browser cache and cookies, disabling security plugins temporarily, increasing the PHP memory limit, checking for conflicting plugins, and trying a different browser are some initial steps you can take. However, if none of these methods work, deleting the object-cache.php file is highly recommended to resolve the issue.