diff --git a/core/frontend/apps/private-blogging/lib/middleware.js b/core/frontend/apps/private-blogging/lib/middleware.js
index d01cb46fe3..149e2a9fa8 100644
--- a/core/frontend/apps/private-blogging/lib/middleware.js
+++ b/core/frontend/apps/private-blogging/lib/middleware.js
@@ -22,9 +22,8 @@ function verifySessionHash(salt, hash) {
 }
 
 function getRedirectUrl(query) {
-    const redirect = decodeURIComponent(query.r || '/');
-
     try {
+        const redirect = decodeURIComponent(query.r || '/');
         return url.parse(redirect).pathname;
     } catch (e) {
         return '/';