diff --git a/staging/src/k8s.io/apiextensions-apiserver/pkg/apiserver/customresource_handler.go b/staging/src/k8s.io/apiextensions-apiserver/pkg/apiserver/customresource_handler.go
index f4277fdb4ca..27ced5552ad 100644
--- a/staging/src/k8s.io/apiextensions-apiserver/pkg/apiserver/customresource_handler.go
+++ b/staging/src/k8s.io/apiextensions-apiserver/pkg/apiserver/customresource_handler.go
@@ -197,6 +197,10 @@ func NewCustomResourceDefinitionHandler(
 // and on the client side (by restarting the watch)
 var longRunningFilter = genericfilters.BasicLongRunningRequestCheck(sets.NewString("watch"), sets.NewString())
 
+// possiblyAcrossAllNamespacesVerbs contains those verbs which can be per-namespace and across all
+// namespaces for namespaces resources. I.e. for these an empty namespace in the requestInfo is fine.
+var possiblyAcrossAllNamespacesVerbs = sets.NewString("list", "watch")
+
 func (r *crdHandler) ServeHTTP(w http.ResponseWriter, req *http.Request) {
 	ctx := req.Context()
 	requestInfo, ok := apirequest.RequestInfoFrom(ctx)
@@ -232,10 +236,24 @@ func (r *crdHandler) ServeHTTP(w http.ResponseWriter, req *http.Request) {
 		http.Error(w, err.Error(), http.StatusInternalServerError)
 		return
 	}
+
+	// if the scope in the CRD and the scope in request differ (with exception of the verbs in possiblyAcrossAllNamespacesVerbs
+	// for namespaced resources), pass request to the delegate, which is supposed to lead to a 404.
+	namespacedCRD, namespacedReq := crd.Spec.Scope == apiextensions.NamespaceScoped, len(requestInfo.Namespace) > 0
+	if !namespacedCRD && namespacedReq {
+		r.delegate.ServeHTTP(w, req)
+		return
+	}
+	if namespacedCRD && !namespacedReq && !possiblyAcrossAllNamespacesVerbs.Has(requestInfo.Verb) {
+		r.delegate.ServeHTTP(w, req)
+		return
+	}
+
 	if !apiextensions.HasServedCRDVersion(crd, requestInfo.APIVersion) {
 		r.delegate.ServeHTTP(w, req)
 		return
 	}
+
 	// There is a small chance that a CRD is being served because NamesAccepted condition is true,
 	// but it becomes "unserved" because another names update leads to a conflict
 	// and EstablishingController wasn't fast enough to put the CRD into the Established condition.