diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 45bb528..7dbd9e0 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -105,3 +105,13 @@ Each JSON configuration file for the gateways can specify detailed settings for
   ]
 }
 ```
+
+## Authentication
+Basic authentication can be enabled using the `--basic-auth` flag. The username and password should be set through environment variables `GATEWAY_USERNAME` and `GATEWAY_PASSWORD`, respectively.
+
+### Running the Application
+To run the application with authentication:
+
+```
+DEBUG=true GATEWAY_USERNAME=myuser GATEWAY_PASSWORD=mypass go run . --config config.json --basic-auth
+```
diff --git a/main.go b/main.go
index a9c28f3..470e544 100644
--- a/main.go
+++ b/main.go
@@ -58,6 +58,11 @@ func main() {
 				Usage: "Load configuration from environment variable named GATEWAY_CONFIG.",
 				Value: false,
 			},
+			&cli.BoolFlag{
+				Name:  "basic-auth",
+				Usage: "Enable basic authentication.",
+				Value: false,
+			},
 		},
 		Action: func(cc *cli.Context) error {
 			configPath := resolveConfigPath(cc.String("config"), cc.Bool("env"))
@@ -73,6 +78,18 @@ func main() {
 			r.Use(httplog.RequestLogger(logger))
 			r.Use(middleware.Recoverer)
 			r.Use(middleware.Heartbeat("/health"))
+			// Add basic auth middleware
+			if cc.Bool("basic-auth") {
+				username := os.Getenv("GATEWAY_USERNAME")
+				password := os.Getenv("GATEWAY_PASSWORD")
+				if username == "" || password == "" {
+					return errors.New("both GATEWAY_USERNAME and GATEWAY_PASSWORD environment variables must be set for basic authentication")
+				}
+				r.Use(middleware.BasicAuth("API Realm", map[string]string{
+					username: password,
+				}))
+			}
+
 			server := &http.Server{
 				Addr:              fmt.Sprintf(":%d", config.Port),
 				Handler:           r,