.github/workflows/ci.yml

@@ -95,12 +95,39 @@ jobs:
       - name: Install dependencies
         run: pip install cryptography
 
+      # 🔴 TRUST ANCHOR — issue #68 finding 4.
+      #
+      # This step used to do `import bcc_core as c` FROM THE CHECKED-OUT PR
+      # BRANCH and verify the catalog against c.CATALOG_PUBKEYS — i.e. it
+      # trusted the public key shipped in the very diff it was reviewing. A
+      # PR that changed data/catalog.json AND bcc_core.CATALOG_PUBKEYS (to
+      # an attacker key, with a matching signature produced by the attacker's
+      # matching private key) went green, because there was nothing outside
+      # the PR's own content to check the key against. The gate's whole
+      # point is catching a friendly-looking PR the maintainer merges
+      # without really reading it — and that hole made it a two-file diff.
+      #
+      # EXPECTED_CATALOG_PUBKEY_B64 below is hardcoded HERE, in the workflow
+      # file, independent of whatever bcc_core.py says on the PR branch. It
+      # is intentionally the only line in this step that matters for
+      # security review: changing it changes what this gate is willing to
+      # trust. THIS CONSTANT IS A TRUST ANCHOR. A PR that changes this line
+      # in the same diff as a catalog change is exactly the attack this gate
+      # exists to prevent — review a change to this line on its own,
+      # never bundled with a catalog update.
+      #
+      # NOTE for the next key rotation: update EXPECTED_CATALOG_PUBKEY_B64
+      # below to the new key's base64 form, as its own reviewed change.
       - name: Verify data/catalog.json.sig
+        env:
+          EXPECTED_CATALOG_PUBKEY_B64: "082NOwVB7uURkvfyS3+knJ+40Fk6C9unsF47+2uPKo4="
         run: |
           python - <<'PY'
-          import pathlib, sys
+          import base64, os, pathlib, sys
           import bcc_core as c
 
+          expected_pubkey_b64 = os.environ["EXPECTED_CATALOG_PUBKEY_B64"]
+
           raw = pathlib.Path("data/catalog.json").read_bytes()
           sig_path = pathlib.Path("data/catalog.json.sig")
 
@@ -111,6 +138,26 @@ jobs:
           if b"\x00" * 32 in c.CATALOG_PUBKEYS:
               sys.exit("FAIL: CATALOG_PUBKEYS still holds the placeholder key.")
 
+          # Trust anchor check FIRST, before verifying anything against
+          # bcc_core.CATALOG_PUBKEYS: a PR is not allowed to bring its own
+          # key. CATALOG_PUBKEYS on the checked-out branch must be EXACTLY
+          # the key(s) this workflow file itself expects -- no more, no
+          # fewer, no substitutions.
+          actual_pubkeys_b64 = [base64.b64encode(k).decode() for k in c.CATALOG_PUBKEYS]
+          if actual_pubkeys_b64 != [expected_pubkey_b64]:
+              sys.exit(
+                  "FAIL: bcc_core.CATALOG_PUBKEYS on this branch does not match the "
+                  "trust anchor hardcoded in .github/workflows/ci.yml.\n"
+                  f"  expected: {[expected_pubkey_b64]}\n"
+                  f"  actual:   {actual_pubkeys_b64}\n"
+                  "\n"
+                  "This PR is changing (or has changed) the catalog signing key. That "
+                  "change must be reviewed on its own, separately from any catalog "
+                  "content change, and the workflow's EXPECTED_CATALOG_PUBKEY_B64 "
+                  "updated deliberately -- not accepted because it happened to match "
+                  "whatever bcc_core.py says on this branch."
+              )
+
           if not c.verify_catalog_signature(raw, sig_path.read_bytes(), c.CATALOG_PUBKEYS):
               sys.exit(
                   "FAIL: data/catalog.json does NOT match its signature.\n"
@@ -124,5 +171,6 @@ jobs:
           if problems:
               sys.exit("FAIL: catalog failed validation:\n  " + "\n  ".join(problems))
 
-          print("OK: catalog signature verifies and the catalog validates clean.")
+          print("OK: catalog signature verifies, the pubkey matches the CI trust anchor, "
+                "and the catalog validates clean.")
           PY

bcc_core.py

@@ -2164,6 +2164,30 @@ def restart_claude_desktop() -> RestartResult:
 # is rejected by validate_catalog() regardless of how plausible it looks.
 CATALOG_ALLOWED_COMMANDS = frozenset({"npx", "uvx", "docker", "node", "python", "python3"})
 
+# Env var keys a catalog entry's config.env must never set. Every one of
+# these is a loader/interpreter override that lets a value walk straight
+# past CATALOG_ALLOWED_COMMANDS and the -e/--eval/-c deny-rule below: e.g.
+# NODE_OPTIONS="--require /tmp/x.js" turns an allowlisted `npx` entry into
+# arbitrary code execution without ever touching config.args, which is the
+# only field the allowlist/deny-rules/ASCII/secret checks used to cover.
+# Matched case-insensitively -- env keys are case-sensitive on POSIX, but a
+# `node_options` lookalike is exactly the kind of thing this must catch.
+CATALOG_DENIED_ENV_KEYS = frozenset(
+    {
+        "NODE_OPTIONS",
+        "PYTHONSTARTUP",
+        "PYTHONPATH",
+        "PYTHONHOME",
+        "LD_PRELOAD",
+        "LD_LIBRARY_PATH",
+        "DYLD_INSERT_LIBRARIES",
+        "DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH",
+        "BROWSER",
+        "PATH",
+        "NODE_REPL_EXTERNAL_MODULE",
+    }
+)
+
 # Ed25519 public keys allowed to sign a catalog, raw 32-byte form. A LIST
 # (not a single key) so keys can be rotated without bricking installs that
 # still trust an older key: verify_catalog_signature() accepts a match
@@ -2189,6 +2213,36 @@ _CATALOG_SECRET_ARG_RE = re.compile(r"(?i)--api[-_]?key=|--token=|--password=")
 # <PLACEHOLDER>-style tokens the GUI must have the user fill in before Save.
 _PLACEHOLDER_RE = re.compile(r"<[^<>\s]+>")
 
+# A catalog entry's id becomes an mcpServers JSON key AND is interpolated
+# into Qt.AutoText widgets (status bar, QMessageBox) -- an id like
+# "<b>Verified</b>" renders as markup there. Not RCE, but UI spoofing, so
+# ids are constrained to a plain lowercase slug.
+_CATALOG_ID_RE = re.compile(r"^[a-z0-9][a-z0-9._-]{0,63}$")
+
+# Docker flags that consume the next arg as a value (so that value must not
+# be mistaken for the image reference when locating it in config.args).
+_DOCKER_VALUE_FLAGS = frozenset(
+    {
+        "-e",
+        "--env",
+        "-v",
+        "--volume",
+        "-p",
+        "--publish",
+        "--name",
+        "-w",
+        "--workdir",
+        "-u",
+        "--user",
+        "--entrypoint",
+        "--network",
+        "--platform",
+        "--add-host",
+        "-l",
+        "--label",
+    }
+)
+
 # How many versions a single accepted catalog jump may leap in one go. Bounds
 # a "freeze" attack: a compromised/leaked signing key claiming an absurd
 # future version would otherwise permanently outrank every legitimate
@@ -2263,6 +2317,121 @@ def _docker_arg_violations(tag: str, args: list[str]) -> list[str]:
     return problems
 
 
+def _catalog_package_spec_version(spec: str) -> str | None:
+    """
+    Extract the version pin from an npm-style package spec, or None if the
+    spec carries no pin.
+
+    Handles unscoped "name@version" and scoped "@scope/name@version" --
+    scoped names have a leading "@" that is NOT the version separator, so a
+    naive split on the first/only "@" misparses "@scope/pkg" (no version)
+    as pinned to "scope/pkg". Splitting from the right side instead is safe
+    for both forms because a package name may contain "@" only as the
+    scope's leading character.
+    """
+    if spec.startswith("@"):
+        rest = spec[1:]
+        if "@" not in rest:
+            return None
+        _, _, version = rest.rpartition("@")
+        return version or None
+    if "@" not in spec:
+        return None
+    _, _, version = spec.rpartition("@")
+    return version or None
+
+
+def _catalog_package_spec_pinned(spec: str) -> bool:
+    """
+    True if `spec` carries an exact version pin. Covers npm's "name@version"
+    / "@scope/name@version" and uv's documented PyPI pin forms
+    "name@version" and "name==version".
+    """
+    if "==" in spec:
+        _, _, version = spec.partition("==")
+        return bool(version)
+    return bool(_catalog_package_spec_version(spec))
+
+
+def _first_catalog_package_spec(args: list[str]) -> str | None:
+    """
+    The first arg that could plausibly BE a package spec: skip flags
+    (leading "-") and <PLACEHOLDER> tokens (which can't be validated and
+    are filled in by the user later, never shipped by the catalog as the
+    package name itself). Everything after the first hit is ignored --
+    trailing flags, paths, and placeholders are not package specs.
+    """
+    for a in args:
+        if a.startswith("-"):
+            continue
+        if _PLACEHOLDER_RE.fullmatch(a):
+            continue
+        return a
+    return None
+
+
+def _catalog_pin_violations(tag: str, command: str, args: list[str]) -> list[str]:
+    """
+    Version-pinning enforcement (finding #3): a catalog PR can otherwise
+    ship `npx -y @scope/pkg` or `docker run img:latest` and the *next*
+    resolve of that package/image is whatever the registry serves that day
+    -- outside review, outside the signature's meaning. This is the only
+    place that enforces pinning at runtime; catalog_review.py's
+    risk_unpinned_package() is a maintainer-facing hint, not a gate.
+    """
+    if command in ("npx", "uvx"):
+        spec = _first_catalog_package_spec(args)
+        if spec is None:
+            return [f"{tag}: config.args must include a package spec to pin (e.g. name@1.2.3)."]
+        if not _catalog_package_spec_pinned(spec):
+            return [
+                f"{tag}: config.args package {spec!r} is not version-pinned; use "
+                "name@version, @scope/name@version, or name==version."
+            ]
+        return []
+
+    if command == "docker":
+        image = _docker_image_ref(args)
+        if image is None:
+            return [f"{tag}: config.args docker command has no image reference to pin."]
+        _, sep, image_tag = image.rpartition(":")
+        if not sep or "/" in image_tag:
+            return [
+                f"{tag}: config.args docker image {image!r} has no explicit tag; "
+                "pin an exact version (not 'latest', not untagged)."
+            ]
+        if image_tag == "latest":
+            return [
+                f"{tag}: config.args docker image {image!r} uses the 'latest' tag, "
+                "which is not allowed; pin an exact version."
+            ]
+        return []
+
+    return []
+
+
+def _docker_image_ref(args: list[str]) -> str | None:
+    """
+    Locate the image reference in a `docker run ...` args list: skip the
+    "run" subcommand and any flags, including ones that consume the next
+    token as a value (-e, -v, --name, ...) so that value isn't mistaken for
+    the image. The first remaining positional token is the image.
+    """
+    i = 0
+    if i < len(args) and args[i] == "run":
+        i += 1
+    while i < len(args):
+        a = args[i]
+        if a.startswith("-"):
+            if a in _DOCKER_VALUE_FLAGS and "=" not in a:
+                i += 2
+            else:
+                i += 1
+            continue
+        return a
+    return None
+
+
 def _validate_catalog_config(tag: str, config) -> list[str]:
     """Validate the `config` block of a basic-tier catalog entry."""
     if not isinstance(config, dict):
@@ -2283,10 +2452,11 @@ def _validate_catalog_config(tag: str, config) -> list[str]:
             f"({', '.join(sorted(CATALOG_ALLOWED_COMMANDS))})."
         )
 
-    args = config.get("args")
-    if not isinstance(args, list) or not all(isinstance(a, str) for a in args):
+    raw_args = config.get("args")
+    args_ok = isinstance(raw_args, list) and all(isinstance(a, str) for a in raw_args)
+    args = raw_args if args_ok else []
+    if not args_ok:
         problems.append(f"{tag}: config.args must be a list of strings.")
-        args = []
 
     for a in args:
         if not a.isascii():
@@ -2305,11 +2475,55 @@ def _validate_catalog_config(tag: str, config) -> list[str]:
     if command == "docker":
         problems.extend(_docker_arg_violations(tag, args))
 
+    # Version pinning (finding #3) -- only meaningful once command/args are
+    # actually well-formed; a malformed args list already got its own
+    # problem above and has nothing left to pin-check.
+    if args_ok and command in ("npx", "uvx", "docker"):
+        problems.extend(_catalog_pin_violations(tag, command, args))
+
     env = config.get("env")
-    if env is not None and (
-        not isinstance(env, dict) or any(not isinstance(v, str) for v in env.values())
-    ):
-        problems.append(f"{tag}: config.env must be an object of string values.")
+    if env is not None:
+        env_ok = isinstance(env, dict) and all(
+            isinstance(k, str) and isinstance(v, str) for k, v in env.items()
+        )
+        if not env_ok:
+            problems.append(f"{tag}: config.env must be an object of string values.")
+        else:
+            # config.env (finding #2): unlike args, env was previously
+            # type-checked ONLY -- no allowlist, no deny-rule, no ASCII
+            # check, no secret check. That made it the single easiest way
+            # to smuggle a payload past every other guard in this
+            # function: an allowlisted `command: npx` plus
+            # NODE_OPTIONS=--require /tmp/x.js in env walks straight past
+            # the command allowlist AND the -e/--eval/-c deny-rule above,
+            # because neither of those ever looks at env.
+            for key, value in env.items():
+                if not key.isascii():
+                    problems.append(
+                        f"{tag}: config.env key {key!r} must be ASCII "
+                        "(non-ASCII code points rejected)."
+                    )
+                if key.upper() in CATALOG_DENIED_ENV_KEYS:
+                    problems.append(
+                        f"{tag}: config.env key {key!r} is on the catalog deny-list "
+                        "(interpreter/loader override) and is not allowed."
+                    )
+                if not value.isascii():
+                    problems.append(
+                        f"{tag}: config.env value for {key!r} must be ASCII "
+                        "(non-ASCII code points rejected)."
+                    )
+                if _is_secret_value(value):
+                    problems.append(
+                        f"{tag}: config.env[{key!r}] looks like a real secret value; "
+                        "catalog entries must never ship secret values."
+                    )
+                if value != "" and not _PLACEHOLDER_RE.fullmatch(value):
+                    problems.append(
+                        f"{tag}: config.env[{key!r}] must be an empty string or a "
+                        "single <PLACEHOLDER> token -- the catalog declares which env "
+                        "vars a server needs, it never supplies their values."
+                    )
 
     return problems
 
@@ -2329,6 +2543,12 @@ def _validate_catalog_entry(idx: int, entry, seen_ids: set[str]) -> list[str]:
         tag = f"servers[{idx}] ({entry_id!r})"
         if not entry_id.isascii():
             problems.append(f"{tag}: 'id' must be ASCII (non-ASCII code points rejected).")
+        elif not _CATALOG_ID_RE.match(entry_id):
+            problems.append(
+                f"{tag}: 'id' must match ^[a-z0-9][a-z0-9._-]{{0,63}}$ "
+                "(it becomes an mcpServers JSON key and is interpolated into "
+                "Qt.AutoText widgets)."
+            )
         if entry_id in seen_ids:
             problems.append(f"{tag}: duplicate id.")
         seen_ids.add(entry_id)
@@ -2442,15 +2662,32 @@ def verify_catalog_signature(raw: bytes, sig: bytes, pubkeys: list[bytes]) -> bo
     return False
 
 
+def _verify_catalog_candidate(candidate: tuple[bytes, bytes] | None) -> tuple[dict | None, int]:
+    """Verify+load+validate one (raw, sig) candidate. Returns (None, -1) on any failure."""
+    if not candidate:
+        return None, -1
+    raw, sig = candidate
+    if not verify_catalog_signature(raw, sig, CATALOG_PUBKEYS):
+        return None, -1
+    try:
+        data = load_catalog(raw)
+    except (ValueError, TypeError):
+        return None, -1
+    if validate_catalog(data):
+        return None, -1
+    return data, catalog_version(data)
+
+
 def resolve_catalog(
     bundled: tuple[bytes, bytes] | None,
     cached: tuple[bytes, bytes] | None,
     remote: tuple[bytes, bytes] | None,
+    floor: int = 0,
 ) -> dict:
     """
-    Pick the highest-version catalog among bundled/cached/remote. Each
-    argument is either None (unavailable) or an (raw_bytes, signature_bytes)
-    pair.
+    Pick the highest-version catalog among bundled/cached/remote. Each of
+    bundled/cached/remote is either None (unavailable) or an (raw_bytes,
+    signature_bytes) pair.
 
     🔴 SECURITY: every candidate — including `bundled`, the copy frozen into
     this binary — is verified against CATALOG_PUBKEYS and re-validated from
@@ -2461,46 +2698,68 @@ def resolve_catalog(
     by virtue of being local. Signing (and checking the signature at
     runtime, every time) closes that.
 
-    Anti-rollback: a candidate's version is never accepted if it's lower
-    than the best verified candidate already found in this same resolution
-    pass — an attacker replaying an old, since-superseded signed catalog
-    can't downgrade you.
+    `floor` is a pure, caller-supplied lower bound (e.g. a persisted
+    "last accepted version" the GUI can load from disk and pass in) — this
+    function does no storage of its own.
 
-    Anti-freeze: a candidate whose version leaps more than
-    _CATALOG_MAX_VERSION_JUMP past the current best is also rejected. A
-    compromised/leaked signing key claiming an absurd future version would
-    otherwise permanently outrank every legitimate release from then on,
-    since the resolver always prefers the highest verified version — this
-    caps how far a single accepted jump can go.
+    Anti-rollback / anti-freeze, and WHY they apply to every candidate
+    including the first one evaluated: the previous version of this
+    function only ran these checks `if best_version >= 0`, i.e. once a
+    candidate had already been accepted in this pass. That let the FIRST
+    verified candidate through unconditionally — a signed catalog claiming
+    version=999999999 sailed straight past both guards if it happened to be
+    evaluated first, and rollback protection reset on every call anyway
+    (nothing persisted across restarts). Now both guards are anchored to
+    something that doesn't depend on iteration order:
+
+    - The anti-freeze cap is measured against the BUNDLED catalog's version
+      (verified independently, once), not against "whatever was accepted
+      so far in this loop." Bundled ships inside the binary, so it's the
+      one candidate that isn't attacker-supplied at resolve time — the
+      natural trust anchor. If bundled itself doesn't verify, `floor` is
+      the anchor instead.
+    - The anti-rollback floor is max(floor, bundled's version), so a
+      caller that persists `floor` across restarts gets real rollback
+      protection; a caller that doesn't still gets "never below bundled."
+
+    On a version TIE, the bundled candidate wins over cached/remote (it
+    previously lost ties to whichever candidate happened to be evaluated
+    last, silently preferring remote over bundled at equal version).
 
     Returns the winning catalog dict, or {} if nothing verified and
     validated.
     """
+    bundled_data, bundled_version = _verify_catalog_candidate(bundled)
+
+    anchor = bundled_version if bundled_version >= 0 else floor
+    min_accepted = max(floor, bundled_version if bundled_version >= 0 else 0)
+
+    candidates = (
+        ("bundled", bundled_data, bundled_version),
+        ("cached", *_verify_catalog_candidate(cached)),
+        ("remote", *_verify_catalog_candidate(remote)),
+    )
+
     best: dict = {}
     best_version = -1
+    best_is_bundled = False
 
-    for candidate in (bundled, cached, remote):
-        if not candidate:
-            continue
-        raw, sig = candidate
-        if not verify_catalog_signature(raw, sig, CATALOG_PUBKEYS):
-            continue
-        try:
-            data = load_catalog(raw)
-        except (ValueError, TypeError):
-            continue
-        if validate_catalog(data):
+    for source, data, version in candidates:
+        if data is None:
             continue
+        if version < min_accepted:
+            continue  # anti-rollback / below the persisted floor
+        if version > anchor + _CATALOG_MAX_VERSION_JUMP:
+            continue  # anti-freeze, capped against the bundled trust anchor
 
-        version = catalog_version(data)
-        if best_version >= 0:
-            if version < best_version:
-                continue  # anti-rollback
-            if version > best_version + _CATALOG_MAX_VERSION_JUMP:
-                continue  # anti-freeze
-
-        best = data
-        best_version = version
+        is_bundled = source == "bundled"
+        better = version > best_version or (
+            version == best_version and is_bundled and not best_is_bundled
+        )
+        if better:
+            best = data
+            best_version = version
+            best_is_bundled = is_bundled
 
     return best
 

tests/test_core.py

@@ -1690,8 +1690,12 @@ def _minimal_catalog(version: int = 1) -> dict:
                 "official": True,
                 "setup": "basic",
                 "config": {
+                    # Pinned on purpose (issue #68 finding 3): an earlier
+                    # version of this fixture used an unpinned package and
+                    # asserted it validated clean, which enshrined the bug
+                    # instead of catching it.
                     "command": "npx",
-                    "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp"],
+                    "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp@1.0.0"],
                 },
                 "placeholders": {},
                 "env_required": {},
@@ -1952,6 +1956,213 @@ def test_validate_catalog_rejects_duplicate_ids():
     assert any("duplicate id" in p for p in problems)
 
 
+# --- validate_catalog: config.env (issue #68 finding 2) -------------------- #
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_each_denied_env_key():
+    for key in sorted(c.CATALOG_DENIED_ENV_KEYS):
+        data = _catalog_with(
+            {"config": {"command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp@1.0.0"], "env": {key: ""}}}
+        )
+        problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+        assert any("deny-list" in p for p in problems), (key, problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_denied_env_key_case_insensitively():
+    data = _catalog_with(
+        {
+            "config": {
+                "command": "npx",
+                "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp@1.0.0"],
+                "env": {"node_options": ""},
+            }
+        }
+    )
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("deny-list" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_nonempty_nonplaceholder_env_value():
+    data = _catalog_with(
+        {
+            "config": {
+                "command": "npx",
+                "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp@1.0.0"],
+                "env": {"FOO_URL": "https://example.com"},
+            }
+        }
+    )
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("empty string or a single <PLACEHOLDER>" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_accepts_empty_and_placeholder_env_values():
+    data = _catalog_with(
+        {
+            "config": {
+                "command": "npx",
+                "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp@1.0.0"],
+                "env": {"FOO": "", "BAR_URL": "<BAR_URL>"},
+            }
+        }
+    )
+    assert c.validate_catalog(data) == []
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_non_ascii_env_key():
+    data = _catalog_with(
+        {
+            "config": {
+                "command": "npx",
+                "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp@1.0.0"],
+                "env": {"FÖO": ""},
+            }
+        }
+    )
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("config.env key" in p and "ASCII" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_non_ascii_env_value():
+    data = _catalog_with(
+        {
+            "config": {
+                "command": "npx",
+                "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp@1.0.0"],
+                "env": {"FOO": "<Bäd>"},
+            }
+        }
+    )
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("config.env value" in p and "ASCII" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_secret_looking_env_value():
+    data = _catalog_with(
+        {
+            "config": {
+                "command": "npx",
+                "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp@1.0.0"],
+                "env": {"SOME_TOKEN": "ghp_abcdef1234567890"},
+            }
+        }
+    )
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("real secret value" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_node_options_env_walking_past_allowlist():
+    # The exact reproduction from issue #68 finding 2: an allowlisted
+    # `npx` command carrying NODE_OPTIONS in env, which previously passed
+    # validation and would have flowed straight into the executed
+    # subprocess via catalog_entry_to_paste_json().
+    data = _catalog_with(
+        {
+            "config": {
+                "command": "npx",
+                "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp@1.0.0"],
+                "env": {"NODE_OPTIONS": "--require /tmp/payload.js"},
+            }
+        }
+    )
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert problems != []
+
+
+# --- validate_catalog: version pinning (issue #68 finding 3) --------------- #
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_unpinned_npx_package():
+    data = _catalog_with({"config": {"command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp"]}})
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("not version-pinned" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_unpinned_scoped_npx_package():
+    data = _catalog_with({"config": {"command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "@scope/pkg"]}})
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("not version-pinned" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_accepts_pinned_scoped_npx_package():
+    data = _catalog_with({"config": {"command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "@scope/pkg@1.2.3"]}})
+    assert c.validate_catalog(data) == []
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_unpinned_uvx_package():
+    data = _catalog_with({"config": {"command": "uvx", "args": ["some-tool"]}})
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("not version-pinned" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_accepts_uvx_at_version_pin():
+    data = _catalog_with({"config": {"command": "uvx", "args": ["some-tool@1.0.0"]}})
+    assert c.validate_catalog(data) == []
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_accepts_uvx_double_equals_pin():
+    data = _catalog_with({"config": {"command": "uvx", "args": ["some-tool==1.0.0"]}})
+    assert c.validate_catalog(data) == []
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_docker_latest_tag():
+    data = _catalog_with({"config": {"command": "docker", "args": ["run", "some/image:latest"]}})
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("'latest'" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_docker_untagged_image():
+    data = _catalog_with({"config": {"command": "docker", "args": ["run", "some/image"]}})
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("no explicit tag" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_accepts_pinned_docker_image_with_flags():
+    data = _catalog_with(
+        {
+            "config": {
+                "command": "docker",
+                "args": ["run", "-i", "--rm", "-e", "SOME_TOKEN", "some/image:1.2.3"],
+            }
+        }
+    )
+    assert c.validate_catalog(data) == []
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_does_not_pin_check_placeholders_flags_or_subcommand():
+    # A pinned uvx spec followed by flags and a <PLACEHOLDER> positional
+    # must not itself get mistaken for an unpinned package.
+    data = _catalog_with(
+        {
+            "config": {
+                "command": "uvx",
+                "args": ["mcp-server-git@2026.7.10", "--repository", "<REPO_PATH>"],
+            }
+        }
+    )
+    assert c.validate_catalog(data) == []
+
+
+# --- validate_catalog: id constraint (issue #68 finding 7) ----------------- #
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_id_with_markup():
+    data = _catalog_with({"id": "<b>Verified</b>"})
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("must match" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_id_with_uppercase():
+    data = _catalog_with({"id": "Widget"})
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("must match" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_rejects_id_starting_with_dash():
+    data = _catalog_with({"id": "-widget"})
+    problems = c.validate_catalog(data)
+    assert any("must match" in p for p in problems)
+
+
+def test_validate_catalog_accepts_valid_slug_id():
+    data = _catalog_with({"id": "widget-2.thing-ok"})
+    assert c.validate_catalog(data) == []
+
+
 # --- resolve_catalog -------------------------------------------------------- #
 def test_resolve_catalog_nothing_available_returns_empty_dict():
     assert c.resolve_catalog(None, None, None) == {}
@@ -2003,13 +2214,93 @@ def test_resolve_catalog_rejects_absurd_version_jump(monkeypatch):
     pub = priv.public_key().public_bytes_raw()
     monkeypatch.setattr(c, "CATALOG_PUBKEYS", [pub])
 
-    cached = _signed(_minimal_catalog(version=5), priv)
+    # The freeze attempt goes FIRST (as `cached`), the legitimate catalog
+    # SECOND (as `remote`) -- on purpose. Putting the good catalog first
+    # (as an earlier version of this test did) never exercises the
+    # vulnerable path: the old implementation only guarded a candidate
+    # against "the best accepted so far," so whichever candidate was
+    # evaluated FIRST got in unconditionally, uncapped. Ordering the freeze
+    # attempt first is what actually proves the cap holds regardless of
+    # evaluation order.
     freeze_attempt = _signed(_minimal_catalog(version=999999), priv)
+    good = _signed(_minimal_catalog(version=5), priv)
 
-    result = c.resolve_catalog(None, cached, freeze_attempt)
+    result = c.resolve_catalog(None, freeze_attempt, good)
     assert c.catalog_version(result) == 5
 
 
+def test_resolve_catalog_caps_first_and_only_candidate(monkeypatch):
+    # issue #68 finding 6: with no bundled catalog to anchor against, a
+    # signed catalog claiming an absurd version must still be capped even
+    # when it is the ONLY candidate resolve_catalog() ever sees -- there is
+    # no "best so far" for it to be compared against, so the cap has to
+    # apply unconditionally, not "once something else has already landed."
+    priv = Ed25519PrivateKey.generate()
+    pub = priv.public_key().public_bytes_raw()
+    monkeypatch.setattr(c, "CATALOG_PUBKEYS", [pub])
+
+    freeze_attempt = _signed(_minimal_catalog(version=999999999), priv)
+
+    result = c.resolve_catalog(None, None, freeze_attempt)
+    assert result == {}
+
+
+def test_resolve_catalog_anchors_cap_to_bundled_not_a_chained_best(monkeypatch):
+    # Anti-freeze must be measured against the BUNDLED version specifically,
+    # not against "whatever the best-so-far happens to be after each
+    # candidate is accepted" -- a chained anchor lets each accepted
+    # candidate ratchet the allowed ceiling upward, so a legitimate
+    # moderate bump (cached) plus a second, much larger jump (remote) can
+    # each individually look "within _CATALOG_MAX_VERSION_JUMP of the
+    # previous one" while remote is nowhere near bundled's version.
+    priv = Ed25519PrivateKey.generate()
+    pub = priv.public_key().public_bytes_raw()
+    monkeypatch.setattr(c, "CATALOG_PUBKEYS", [pub])
+
+    bundled = _signed(_minimal_catalog(version=2), priv)
+    cached = _signed(_minimal_catalog(version=1000), priv)  # within 1000 of bundled
+    remote = _signed(_minimal_catalog(version=1900), priv)  # within 1000 of cached,
+    #                                                          NOT of bundled
+
+    result = c.resolve_catalog(bundled, cached, remote)
+    assert c.catalog_version(result) == 1000
+
+
+def test_resolve_catalog_prefers_bundled_on_version_tie(monkeypatch):
+    # issue #68 finding 6: on a tie the LAST candidate evaluated used to
+    # win, so remote silently beat bundled at equal version. Bundled --
+    # the copy frozen into the binary -- must win ties.
+    priv = Ed25519PrivateKey.generate()
+    pub = priv.public_key().public_bytes_raw()
+    monkeypatch.setattr(c, "CATALOG_PUBKEYS", [pub])
+
+    bundled_data = _minimal_catalog(version=5)
+    bundled = _signed(bundled_data, priv)
+
+    remote_data = _minimal_catalog(version=5)
+    remote_data["servers"][0]["display"] = "Remote Impostor"
+    remote = _signed(remote_data, priv)
+
+    result = c.resolve_catalog(bundled, None, remote)
+    assert c.catalog_version(result) == 5
+    assert result["servers"][0]["display"] == "Widget"
+
+
+def test_resolve_catalog_floor_rejects_below_persisted_version(monkeypatch):
+    # `floor` is a pure parameter: the caller (eventually the GUI, from
+    # persisted storage) can pass a previously-accepted version, and
+    # nothing below it may be accepted even with no bundled catalog to
+    # anchor against.
+    priv = Ed25519PrivateKey.generate()
+    pub = priv.public_key().public_bytes_raw()
+    monkeypatch.setattr(c, "CATALOG_PUBKEYS", [pub])
+
+    stale = _signed(_minimal_catalog(version=3), priv)
+
+    result = c.resolve_catalog(None, None, stale, floor=10)
+    assert result == {}
+
+
 def test_resolve_catalog_malformed_candidate_does_not_raise(monkeypatch):
     priv = Ed25519PrivateKey.generate()
     pub = priv.public_key().public_bytes_raw()
@@ -2039,15 +2330,32 @@ def test_resolve_catalog_invalid_but_signed_candidate_is_skipped(monkeypatch):
 def test_catalog_entry_to_paste_json_basic_shape():
     entry = _minimal_catalog()["servers"][0]
     result = c.catalog_entry_to_paste_json(entry)
-    assert result == {"widget": {"command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp"]}}
+    assert result == {"widget": {"command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "widget-mcp@1.0.0"]}}
 
 
 def test_catalog_entry_to_paste_json_includes_env_when_present():
+    # NOTE: catalog_entry_to_paste_json() is a pure shape-converter for an
+    # entry that has ALREADY passed validate_catalog() -- it is correct for
+    # it to carry env through verbatim. The bug (issue #68 finding 2) was
+    # never in this function; it was that validate_catalog() let entries
+    # with dangerous/non-placeholder env values reach this function in the
+    # first place. This test now proves that boundary explicitly: a
+    # validation-legal env value (a <PLACEHOLDER> token) survives the
+    # conversion, and a value validate_catalog() would have rejected is
+    # confirmed rejected before it ever gets here.
     entry = _minimal_catalog()["servers"][0]
     entry["config"]["env"] = {"GRAFANA_URL": "<GRAFANA_URL>"}
     result = c.catalog_entry_to_paste_json(entry)
     assert result["widget"]["env"] == {"GRAFANA_URL": "<GRAFANA_URL>"}
 
+    catalog = _minimal_catalog()
+    catalog["servers"][0]["config"]["env"] = {"GRAFANA_URL": "<GRAFANA_URL>"}
+    assert c.validate_catalog(catalog) == []
+
+    malicious = _minimal_catalog()
+    malicious["servers"][0]["config"]["env"] = {"NODE_OPTIONS": "--require /tmp/payload.js"}
+    assert c.validate_catalog(malicious) != []
+
 
 def test_config_has_unfilled_placeholders_true_for_token():
     cfg = {"command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "server", "<ALLOWED_DIR>"]}