diff --git a/medusa/server/api/v2/auth.py b/medusa/server/api/v2/auth.py
index 6b6062e8a7..77f37cd31b 100644
--- a/medusa/server/api/v2/auth.py
+++ b/medusa/server/api/v2/auth.py
@@ -74,7 +74,7 @@ def _login(self, exp=86400):
                 'exp': time_now + int(exp),
                 'username': app.WEB_USERNAME,
                 'apiKey': app.API_KEY
-            }, app.ENCRYPTION_SECRET, algorithm='HS256')
+            }, app.ENCRYPTION_SECRET, algorithm='HS256').decode('utf-8')
         })
 
     def _failed_login(self, error=None):