diff --git a/src/utils/users.js b/src/utils/users.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..aa7242d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/utils/users.js
@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+import User from '../models/users'
+import config from '../../config/config'
+import { verify } from 'jsonwebtoken'
+
+export async function ensureUser (ctx, next) {
+  const { token } = ctx.query
+
+  if(!token) {
+    ctx.throw(401)
+  }
+
+  let decoded = null
+  try {
+    decoded = verify(token, config.tokenSecret)
+  } catch(err) {
+    ctx.throw(401)
+  }
+
+  try {
+    const user = await User.findById(decoded.id)
+    if(!user) {
+      ctx.throw(401)
+    }
+  } catch (err) {
+    ctx.throw(500)
+  }
+
+  return next()
+}