diff --git a/packages/cli/src/capture/navigateForCapture.ts b/packages/cli/src/capture/navigateForCapture.ts
index 0e9c1b60c5..d5dd323d6c 100644
--- a/packages/cli/src/capture/navigateForCapture.ts
+++ b/packages/cli/src/capture/navigateForCapture.ts
@@ -9,8 +9,6 @@ export { isNavigationTimeoutError };
 
 export const NETWORK_IDLE_ATTEMPT_MS = 30_000;
 
-/** Chromium's words for a proxy in the way: the tunnel to the site was refused or not made, or the proxy itself
- * could not be reached. */
 const PROXY_FAILURES = {
   "net::ERR_TUNNEL_CONNECTION_FAILED": (host: string) =>
     `Your network's proxy refused the connection to ${host}. Ask whoever runs it to allow ${host}.`,
@@ -19,17 +17,11 @@ const PROXY_FAILURES = {
 } as const;
 const PROXY_FAILURE = new RegExp(Object.keys(PROXY_FAILURES).join("|"));
 
-/** The error as the person should read it when their network's proxy was the problem; any other error as is. */
 export function explainProxyRefusal(err: unknown, url: string): unknown {
   const said = err instanceof Error ? err.message : String(err);
   const code = PROXY_FAILURE.exec(said)?.[0] as keyof typeof PROXY_FAILURES | undefined;
   if (!code) return err;
-  let host = "the site";
-  try {
-    host = new URL(url).host;
-  } catch {
-    // expected: an unparseable address is not echoed
-  }
+  const host = URL.canParse(url) ? new URL(url).host : "the site";
   return new Error(`${PROXY_FAILURES[code](host)} (${code})`, { cause: err });
 }