diff --git a/workspaces/scorecard/.changeset/six-seas-wear.md b/workspaces/scorecard/.changeset/six-seas-wear.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..7320a013d07
--- /dev/null
+++ b/workspaces/scorecard/.changeset/six-seas-wear.md
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+---
+'@red-hat-developer-hub/backstage-plugin-scorecard-backend-module-sonarqube': patch
+---
+
+Resolve issue for `sonarqube.openIssues` Scorecard SonarQube metric when the project is inaccessible.
diff --git a/workspaces/scorecard/plugins/scorecard-backend-module-sonarqube/src/clients/SonarQubeClient.test.ts b/workspaces/scorecard/plugins/scorecard-backend-module-sonarqube/src/clients/SonarQubeClient.test.ts
index 2c89dabce38..e5f9be7510e 100644
--- a/workspaces/scorecard/plugins/scorecard-backend-module-sonarqube/src/clients/SonarQubeClient.test.ts
+++ b/workspaces/scorecard/plugins/scorecard-backend-module-sonarqube/src/clients/SonarQubeClient.test.ts
@@ -83,20 +83,88 @@ describe('SonarQubeClient', () => {
   });
 
   describe('getOpenIssuesCount', () => {
-    it('returns the total count of open issues', async () => {
-      mockFetch.mockResolvedValueOnce({
-        ok: true,
-        json: async () => ({ total: 42 }),
-      });
+    it('returns the total count of open issues after verifying project access', async () => {
+      mockFetch
+        .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+          ok: true,
+          json: async () => ({ component: { key: 'my-project' } }),
+        })
+        .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+          ok: true,
+          json: async () => ({
+            total: 42,
+            paging: { pageIndex: 1, pageSize: 1, total: 42 },
+          }),
+        });
 
       const result = await client.getOpenIssuesCount('my-project');
 
       expect(result).toBe(42);
-      expect(mockFetch).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
+      expect(mockFetch).toHaveBeenNthCalledWith(
+        1,
+        'https://sonarcloud.io/api/components/show?component=my-project',
+        expect.any(Object),
+      );
+      expect(mockFetch).toHaveBeenNthCalledWith(
+        2,
         'https://sonarcloud.io/api/issues/search?componentKeys=my-project&statuses=OPEN,CONFIRMED,REOPENED&ps=1',
         expect.any(Object),
       );
     });
+
+    it('throws when project access check fails and does not search issues', async () => {
+      mockFetch.mockResolvedValueOnce({
+        ok: false,
+        status: 404,
+        statusText: 'Not Found',
+      });
+
+      await expect(client.getOpenIssuesCount('my-project')).rejects.toThrow(
+        "SonarQube project 'my-project' is not accessible or the project key is missing or invalid",
+      );
+      expect(mockFetch).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+      expect(mockFetch).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
+        'https://sonarcloud.io/api/components/show?component=my-project',
+        expect.any(Object),
+      );
+    });
+
+    it('propagates API errors from issues search after access check succeeds', async () => {
+      mockFetch
+        .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+          ok: true,
+          json: async () => ({ component: { key: 'my-project' } }),
+        })
+        .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+          ok: false,
+          status: 503,
+          statusText: 'Service Unavailable',
+        });
+
+      await expect(client.getOpenIssuesCount('my-project')).rejects.toThrow(
+        /SonarQube API error: 503 Service Unavailable/,
+      );
+      expect(mockFetch).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(2);
+    });
+
+    it('returns 0 when the project is accessible and has no open issues', async () => {
+      mockFetch
+        .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+          ok: true,
+          json: async () => ({ component: { key: 'my-project' } }),
+        })
+        .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+          ok: true,
+          json: async () => ({
+            total: 0,
+            paging: { pageIndex: 1, pageSize: 1, total: 0 },
+          }),
+        });
+
+      const result = await client.getOpenIssuesCount('my-project');
+
+      expect(result).toBe(0);
+    });
   });
 
   describe('getMeasures', () => {
diff --git a/workspaces/scorecard/plugins/scorecard-backend-module-sonarqube/src/clients/SonarQubeClient.ts b/workspaces/scorecard/plugins/scorecard-backend-module-sonarqube/src/clients/SonarQubeClient.ts
index 6aac7e92fcb..0cb121bb2bf 100644
--- a/workspaces/scorecard/plugins/scorecard-backend-module-sonarqube/src/clients/SonarQubeClient.ts
+++ b/workspaces/scorecard/plugins/scorecard-backend-module-sonarqube/src/clients/SonarQubeClient.ts
@@ -107,14 +107,29 @@ export class SonarQubeClient {
     projectKey: string,
     instanceName?: string,
   ): Promise<number> {
-    this.logger.debug(`Fetching open issues count for project ${projectKey}`);
-    const data = await this.fetchApi(
-      `/api/issues/search?componentKeys=${encodeURIComponent(
-        projectKey,
-      )}&statuses=OPEN,CONFIRMED,REOPENED&ps=1`,
-      instanceName,
-    );
-    return data.total;
+      this.logger.debug(`Fetching open issues count for project ${projectKey}`);
+
+      // Additional check to ensure the project is accessible
+      try {
+        await this.fetchApi(
+          `/api/components/show?component=${encodeURIComponent(projectKey)}`,
+          instanceName,
+        );
+      }
+      catch {
+        throw new Error(
+          `SonarQube project '${projectKey}' is not accessible or the project key is missing or invalid`,
+        );
+      }
+
+      const data = await this.fetchApi(
+        `/api/issues/search?componentKeys=${encodeURIComponent(
+          projectKey,
+        )}&statuses=OPEN,CONFIRMED,REOPENED&ps=1`,
+        instanceName,
+      );    
+  
+      return data.paging?.total ?? data.total ?? 0;
   }
 
   async getMeasures(