diff --git a/src/lib/whatsapp/template-header-handle.test.ts b/src/lib/whatsapp/template-header-handle.test.ts
index f73af6d..4787291 100644
--- a/src/lib/whatsapp/template-header-handle.test.ts
+++ b/src/lib/whatsapp/template-header-handle.test.ts
@@ -5,8 +5,15 @@ vi.mock('./meta-api', () => ({
   uploadResumableMedia: vi.fn(async () => ({ handle: 'HANDLE123' })),
 }));
 
+// The SSRF guard does a real DNS lookup, so stub it — the fixtures below use
+// a `.test` hostname that would never resolve. Each test sets the verdict.
+vi.mock('@/lib/webhooks/ssrf', () => ({
+  isDeliverableUrl: vi.fn(async () => true),
+}));
+
 import { ensureImageHeaderHandle } from './template-header-handle';
 import { uploadResumableMedia } from './meta-api';
+import { isDeliverableUrl } from '@/lib/webhooks/ssrf';
 import type { TemplatePayload } from './template-validators';
 
 function payload(over: Partial<TemplatePayload> = {}): TemplatePayload {
@@ -33,6 +40,8 @@ function imgResponse(type = 'image/jpeg', size = 1024, ok = true, status = 200):
 describe('ensureImageHeaderHandle', () => {
   beforeEach(() => {
     vi.mocked(uploadResumableMedia).mockClear();
+    vi.mocked(isDeliverableUrl).mockClear();
+    vi.mocked(isDeliverableUrl).mockResolvedValue(true);
   });
   afterEach(() => {
     vi.unstubAllGlobals();
@@ -78,4 +87,58 @@ describe('ensureImageHeaderHandle', () => {
     vi.stubGlobal('fetch', vi.fn(async () => imgResponse('image/png', 6 * 1024 * 1024)));
     await expect(ensureImageHeaderHandle(payload(), 'tok')).rejects.toThrow(/5 MB/);
   });
+
+  // Regression: `header_media_url` is caller-supplied and any authenticated
+  // member can submit a template, so a non-public destination has to be
+  // refused *before* the server issues the request — otherwise the status
+  // and content-type carried back in the thrown error are an SSRF oracle for
+  // loopback, RFC1918 and cloud-metadata addresses.
+  it('refuses a non-public header URL without fetching it', async () => {
+    vi.stubEnv('META_APP_ID', 'app-1');
+    vi.mocked(isDeliverableUrl).mockResolvedValue(false);
+    const fetchSpy = vi.fn(async () => imgResponse('application/json'));
+    vi.stubGlobal('fetch', fetchSpy);
+
+    const p = payload({ header_media_url: 'http://169.254.169.254/latest/meta-data/' });
+    await expect(ensureImageHeaderHandle(p, 'tok')).rejects.toThrow(/publicly reachable/);
+
+    expect(isDeliverableUrl).toHaveBeenCalledWith('http://169.254.169.254/latest/meta-data/');
+    expect(fetchSpy).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    expect(uploadResumableMedia).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    expect(p.header_handle).toBeUndefined();
+  });
+
+  it('reports a blocked URL exactly like an unreachable one', async () => {
+    vi.stubEnv('META_APP_ID', 'app-1');
+
+    vi.mocked(isDeliverableUrl).mockResolvedValue(false);
+    vi.stubGlobal('fetch', vi.fn(async () => imgResponse()));
+    const blocked = await ensureImageHeaderHandle(payload(), 'tok').catch(
+      (e: Error) => e.message,
+    );
+
+    vi.mocked(isDeliverableUrl).mockResolvedValue(true);
+    vi.stubGlobal(
+      'fetch',
+      vi.fn(async () => {
+        throw new Error('ECONNREFUSED');
+      }),
+    );
+    const unreachable = await ensureImageHeaderHandle(payload(), 'tok').catch(
+      (e: Error) => e.message,
+    );
+
+    expect(blocked).toBe(unreachable);
+  });
+
+  it('does not follow redirects, so a public URL cannot bounce to an internal one', async () => {
+    vi.stubEnv('META_APP_ID', 'app-1');
+    const fetchSpy = vi.fn(async () => imgResponse('image/jpeg', 1024));
+    vi.stubGlobal('fetch', fetchSpy);
+
+    await ensureImageHeaderHandle(payload(), 'tok');
+
+    const init = (fetchSpy.mock.calls[0] as unknown[])[1] as RequestInit;
+    expect(init).toMatchObject({ redirect: 'manual' });
+  });
 });
diff --git a/src/lib/whatsapp/template-header-handle.ts b/src/lib/whatsapp/template-header-handle.ts
index eb05183..19722ad 100644
--- a/src/lib/whatsapp/template-header-handle.ts
+++ b/src/lib/whatsapp/template-header-handle.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 import { uploadResumableMedia } from '@/lib/whatsapp/meta-api'
 import type { TemplatePayload } from '@/lib/whatsapp/template-validators'
+import { isDeliverableUrl } from '@/lib/webhooks/ssrf'
 
 /**
  * Meta requires an `example.header_handle` (from the Resumable Upload
@@ -33,11 +34,27 @@ export async function ensureImageHeaderHandle(
     )
   }
 
+  // SSRF guard: `header_media_url` is caller-supplied (any authenticated
+  // member can submit a template) and the fetch below happens server-side,
+  // so refuse any destination that resolves to a private / loopback /
+  // link-local / reserved address. Same guard, same message as the two
+  // other outbound-fetch call sites (see lib/webhooks/ssrf.ts) — matching
+  // the unreachable-host message keeps the failure from being an oracle.
+  if (!(await isDeliverableUrl(payload.header_media_url))) {
+    throw new Error('Could not fetch the header image URL. Make sure it is publicly reachable.')
+  }
+
   // Fetch the sample image bytes (works for our uploaded chat-media URL
   // and for a manually-pasted public link).
   let res: Response
   try {
-    res = await fetch(payload.header_media_url)
+    res = await fetch(payload.header_media_url, {
+      // Do NOT follow redirects — a public URL could 3xx-bounce to an
+      // internal address, defeating the guard above. Bound the request so
+      // a hung host can't tie up the template-submit handler.
+      redirect: 'manual',
+      signal: AbortSignal.timeout(10_000),
+    })
   } catch {
     throw new Error('Could not fetch the header image URL. Make sure it is publicly reachable.')
   }