diff --git a/cloudrun-malware-scanner/bootstrap.sh b/cloudrun-malware-scanner/bootstrap.sh
index f0706f4..459f936 100755
--- a/cloudrun-malware-scanner/bootstrap.sh
+++ b/cloudrun-malware-scanner/bootstrap.sh
@@ -82,7 +82,15 @@ fi
 export PROXY_PORT=8888
 PROXY_SERVER_ADDRESS=127.0.0.1:${PROXY_PORT}
 npm run start-proxy "${CONFIG_FILE}" &
-sleep 5
+# wait for it to startup before freshclam connects to it...
+attempts=10
+while [[ $attempts -gt 0 ]]; do
+  curl -s -I "${PROXY_SERVER_ADDRESS}" > /dev/null 2>&1
+  [[ $? != 7 ]] && break;
+  Log INFO main "Waiting for proxy server to start..."
+  attempts=$((attempts - 1))
+  sleep 5
+done
 
 # This function is used to update clam and freshclam config files.
 # Use by specifying the config file on the command line and