diff --git a/backend/src/middleware/secureStatic.js b/backend/src/middleware/secureStatic.js
index ab9d9b0..185d9d4 100644
--- a/backend/src/middleware/secureStatic.js
+++ b/backend/src/middleware/secureStatic.js
@@ -12,8 +12,8 @@ function secureStatic(basePath, options = {}) {
   const normalizedBase = path.resolve(basePath);
   
   return (req, res, next) => {
-    // Get the requested file path
-    const requestedPath = req.path;
+    // Get the requested file path - remove leading slash for validation
+    const requestedPath = req.path.startsWith('/') ? req.path.substring(1) : req.path;
     
     // Validate the path doesn't contain dangerous patterns
     if (!isPathSafe(requestedPath)) {
diff --git a/backend/src/utils/fileSecurityUtils.js b/backend/src/utils/fileSecurityUtils.js
index 624d2ad..b7fb11d 100644
--- a/backend/src/utils/fileSecurityUtils.js
+++ b/backend/src/utils/fileSecurityUtils.js
@@ -37,7 +37,6 @@ function isPathSafe(filePath) {
   // Check for common path traversal patterns
   const dangerousPatterns = [
     /\.\.[\/\\]/,  // ../ or ..\
-    /^[\/\\]/,     // Absolute paths
     /^[A-Za-z]:/,  // Windows drive letters
     /[\x00-\x1f]/  // Control characters
   ];