diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index ed830cb..f8f9955 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -1,8 +1,19 @@
 # Copy to .env and fill in. Never commit the real .env.
 
-# Long random secret shared with the userscript's API_TOKEN. Generate one:
+# Secret every Reader's userscript credential is derived from (issue #24):
+# the backend rebuilds install URLs from it, and only SHA-256 hashes of the
+# credentials ever touch the database. Generate one:
 #   openssl rand -hex 32
-API_TOKEN=changeme-generate-a-long-random-token
+TOKEN_KEY=changeme-generate-a-long-random-token
+
+# Retired global credential, kept only during the cutover window so
+# already-installed scripts keep working. Remove both it and
+# API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL once the window has passed and every device has
+# reinstalled through the web UI.
+# API_TOKEN=
+# Moment the retired credential stops resolving to the owner (YYYY-MM-DD or
+# RFC3339). Enforced in code on every request; unset means it is already dead.
+# API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL=2026-08-22
 
 # The owner's Discord user ID — the one Reader every bookmark belongs to
 # (seeded at startup). Discord snowflake, e.g. 1046923170000000000.
diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index b07f2df..f94dd25 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -70,7 +70,7 @@ instantly.
 
 Existing guarantees — don't regress:
 
-- Auth on `/bookmarks*`: require `Authorization: Bearer <API_TOKEN>`, **constant-time compare**, 401 otherwise.
+- Auth on `/bookmarks*`: require `Authorization: Bearer <credential>` — the acting Reader's credential, matched by SHA-256 against `readers.token_sha256` — **constant-time compare** (via the hash, never the secret itself), 401 otherwise.
 - CORS: reflect `Origin` only when in `ALLOWED_ORIGINS`; allow `GET,PUT,DELETE,OPTIONS` + headers `Authorization,Content-Type`; answer preflight `OPTIONS` with `204`.
 
 ## Secure coding rules (code you write here)
@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@ Go backend:
 - `html/template` only for anything a browser parses, never `text/template`. Never wrap stored or fetched strings in `template.HTML`/`JS`/`URL`; that switches off the escaping every template depends on.
 - Any outbound fetch of a client-supplied URL passes `fetchableSeriesURL` (site + `https` + host check) first. `series_url` arrives in a PUT body, so without the gate the poller will probe arbitrary hosts from the server's own network position. New fetch path reuses the gate rather than re-deriving one.
 - Cap every remote body with `io.LimitReader` (`maxBodyBytes`). An unbounded read is an OOM handed to whatever is on the other end.
-- Compare secrets with `hmac.Equal` / `subtle.ConstantTimeCompare`, never `==`. Covers the API token.
+- Compare secrets with `hmac.Equal` / `subtle.ConstantTimeCompare`, never `==`. Covers the retired global token during its grace window.
 - Errors: generic text to the client (`http.Error(w, "internal error", 500)`), detail to `log.Printf`. Never log `API_TOKEN`, `DISCORD_CLIENT_SECRET`, a session id, or a whole `Authorization` header.
 - Proxy headers are trusted only where they already are: `X-Forwarded-Proto` for the Secure cookie flag, **rightmost** `X-Forwarded-For` for client IP (leftmost is attacker-supplied). Don't read either anywhere else.
 - Session cookies keep `HttpOnly`, `SameSite`, `Secure`-when-HTTPS; expiry is enforced by the `sessions` table lookup, not a signature.
@@ -93,8 +93,8 @@ Go backend:
 Userscript:
 
 - Site-derived and stored strings render via `el(..., {text})` / `textContent`. `{html}` and `innerHTML` are for author-written literal markup only (`TEMPLATE`, `CSS`) — never a title, chapter label, or API response field. The page DOM belongs to a third-party site; treat it as attacker-controlled.
-- Isolated world protects the token from the site's JS. It does not protect anything from an `innerHTML` sink you add yourself.
-- The `API_TOKEN` literal sits in both userscripts and must equal backend `API_TOKEN`. Never copy it into logs, docs, commit messages, issues, or a new file. Rotation touches three places: backend env plus both scripts.
+- Isolated world protects the credential from the site's JS. It does not protect anything from an `innerHTML` sink you add yourself.
+- The userscripts carry `__API_TOKEN__` placeholders, substituted at serve time with the requesting Reader's credential (`internal/userscript`). Never put a real credential in the repo, docs, commit messages, or issues. Rotation is a web-UI action (epoch bump, `internal/token`); `TOKEN_KEY` in backend env is what derives every credential — never log it.
 - `fetch()` targets `API_BASE` only — no dynamic origin, no site-supplied URL. `authHeaders()` goes nowhere but the backend.
 - `localStorage` is shared with the site's own JS: cache and queue live there, credentials never do.
 - Wrap every `localStorage` read/write and `JSON.parse` in try/catch (quota, private mode, corrupt entry), as the existing helpers do.
diff --git a/DEPLOY.md b/DEPLOY.md
index 0a76fc5..cedecb0 100644
--- a/DEPLOY.md
+++ b/DEPLOY.md
@@ -32,8 +32,9 @@ cp .env.example .env
 Edit `.env`:
 
 ```ini
-# Required — long random secret, also goes in the userscript.
-API_TOKEN=<paste output of: openssl rand -hex 32>
+# Required — secret every Reader's userscript credential is derived from.
+# Only SHA-256 hashes of credentials are stored.
+TOKEN_KEY=<paste output of: openssl rand -hex 32>
 
 # Required — the owner's Discord user ID. Seeds the one Reader every bookmark
 # belongs to; the value is the snowflake in your Discord profile (Settings →
@@ -66,11 +67,18 @@ BOOKMARK_WEB_HOST=bookmark.violetcrown.my.id
 Generate + insert the two secrets in three lines:
 
 ```bash
-sed -i "s|^API_TOKEN=.*|API_TOKEN=$(openssl rand -hex 32)|" .env
+sed -i "s|^TOKEN_KEY=.*|TOKEN_KEY=$(openssl rand -hex 32)|" .env
 sed -i "s|^POSTGRES_PASSWORD=.*|POSTGRES_PASSWORD=$(openssl rand -hex 24)|" .env
-grep -E '^API_TOKEN=' .env   # copy this — the userscript needs the same value
+grep -E '^TOKEN_KEY=' .env
 ```
 
+`TOKEN_KEY` derives every Reader's userscript credential (issue #24); only
+SHA-256 hashes of the credentials are stored, so this secret is what a
+database leak alone cannot recover. If you are upgrading across the cutover,
+also set `API_TOKEN` (the retired global credential) and
+`API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL` in `.env` so already-installed scripts keep working
+for the window — see §6.
+
 `POSTGRES_PASSWORD` is read **only while the `postgres-data` volume is empty**,
 which in practice means at first boot. Changing it afterwards changes the URL
 the backend dials but not the password the database expects, and `bookmark-api`
@@ -133,7 +141,7 @@ gated by membership in one configured guild.
 Sessions are rows in the database: the cookie carries only an opaque id, and
 every request looks the row up and checks its expiry. Deleting a session row —
 or the whole `sessions` table — logs the browser out immediately; nothing is
-signed, so rotating `API_TOKEN` does not affect browser sessions. Sessions
+signed, so rotating a credential does not affect browser sessions. Sessions
 last 60 days.
 
 ---
@@ -180,6 +188,8 @@ curl -s https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id/healthz          # -> ok
 curl -s -o /dev/null -w '%{http_code}\n' \
   https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id/bookmarks              # -> 401
 
+# During the grace window the retired global credential still resolves to the
+# owner; afterwards it is 401 like any other wrong credential.
 TOKEN=$(grep -E '^API_TOKEN=' .env | cut -d= -f2)
 curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
   https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id/bookmarks              # -> []
@@ -199,29 +209,30 @@ a bad cert makes the browser block the userscript's `fetch()` (mixed content).
 
 ## 4. Configure the userscript
 
-Edit the config block at the top of `userscript/manga-bookmark.user.js`:
+The bindmounted `userscript/*.user.js` files carry `__API_TOKEN__` placeholders
+and the deployment's `@downloadURL`/`@updateURL` lines. Check the metadata
+block — it ships hardcoded to this deployment's domain, so a deployer who
+copies the repo to another domain must edit the two lines or the script
+auto-updates from someone else's backend:
 
 ```js
-const API_BASE = "https://bookmark-api.yourdomain.com"; // no trailing slash
-const API_TOKEN = "<same token as .env>";
+// @downloadURL  https://bookmark-api.yourdomain.com/u/__API_TOKEN__/manga-bookmark.user.js
+// @updateURL    https://bookmark-api.yourdomain.com/u/__API_TOKEN__/manga-bookmark.user.js
 ```
 
-The token sits in the userscript's isolated world — the manga sites' JS can't
-read it.
-
-Also edit the `@downloadURL`/`@updateURL` metadata lines near the top of the
-file — they ship hardcoded to this deployment's domain and token, so a
-deployer who skips them ends up auto-updating from someone else's backend.
-See "Installing / updating the userscript" below for how those two lines are
-used.
+The backend substitutes `__API_TOKEN__` with the requesting Reader's derived
+credential at serve time (issue #24), so no real credential ever sits in the
+file. Only the `API_BASE` constant and the metadata hostname are deployer
+edits; do not put a credential in this file.
 
 ---
 
 ## 5. Install on Bromite
 
 1. Bromite → **Settings → User scripts** → enable (accept the permission prompt).
-2. Put the edited `manga-bookmark.user.js` on the device (save the file, or open
-   its raw URL). Bromite detects `.user.js` and offers to install.
+2. Sign in to the web UI, open the **Userscripts** panel, and open the install
+   link — Bromite detects `.user.js` and offers to install. The script already
+   carries your credential; you never see or type one.
 3. Confirm install — the `@match` list covers both sites.
 4. Open a series on asurascans.com or demonicscans.org → a 📑 button appears
    bottom-right → tap → **+ Bookmark this**.
@@ -229,6 +240,9 @@ used.
 Optional desktop test: the script is `GM_*`-free, so the same file installs in
 Tampermonkey/Violentmonkey for quick checks before going mobile.
 
+Rotating the credential in the same web-UI panel invalidates every installed
+copy immediately — reinstall on all devices, or they silently stop syncing.
+
 ---
 
 ## 6. Smoke-test the full loop
@@ -265,9 +279,10 @@ it; see `REDEPLOY.md` §1 for when to remove it.)
 | No cert / TLS error at the domain | `TRAEFIK_ENTRYPOINT` or `TRAEFIK_CERTRESOLVER` name wrong; or DNS not resolving yet. Check `docker logs <traefik>`. |
 | 404 from Traefik | Service not on the `proxy` network, or `BOOKMARK_API_HOST` mismatch. Confirm `docker network inspect proxy` lists `bookmark-api`. |
 | `fetch` fails in the userscript, `curl` works | Origin missing from `ALLOWED_ORIGINS`, or mixed content (backend not HTTPS). |
-| 401 with the right token | Trailing space/newline in `API_TOKEN`; regenerate and restart. |
+| 401 with the right credential | The script's credential no longer matches the stored hash — most likely a rotation happened and the device was not reinstalled. Reinstall from the web UI. |
+| 401 after rotation, even right after reinstalling | `TOKEN_KEY` changed between the rotation and the reinstall; credentials are derived from it, so changing it invalidates every credential. Keep it stable. |
 | Panel button absent | URL didn't match an adapter, or user scripts disabled in Bromite. |
-| `compose ... config` errors about `API_TOKEN`, `OWNER_DISCORD_ID` or `POSTGRES_PASSWORD` | Run compose from the dir with `.env`, or export the vars. All three are required and none has a fallback. |
+| `compose ... config` errors about `TOKEN_KEY`, `OWNER_DISCORD_ID` or `POSTGRES_PASSWORD` | Run compose from the dir with `.env`, or export the vars. All three are required and none has a fallback. |
 | `bookmark-api` restarts in a loop, `password authentication failed for user "bookmarks"` | `POSTGRES_PASSWORD` was changed after first boot; Postgres only applies it to an empty `postgres-data`. Restore the old value, or reset the role (`REDEPLOY.md` troubleshooting). |
 | `bookmark-api` never logs `listening on :8080` | It is blocked on `postgres` passing `pg_isready`, or a migration failed. `docker compose -f docker-compose.yml -f docker-compose.prod.yml logs postgres`. |
 
@@ -278,20 +293,25 @@ Backend config reference and endpoint list: see `README.md`.
 ## Installing / updating the userscript
 
 The backend serves the script itself, so Violentmonkey can auto-update it.
-Complements §4 above — that step points `API_BASE`/`API_TOKEN` at your
-backend; this one points `@downloadURL`/`@updateURL` at the same place so
-auto-updates come from it too.
+Complements §4 above — the `@downloadURL`/`@updateURL` lines point at the
+credential-bearing path, so auto-updates come from the same place as the
+install.
 
-Install once, on the phone (Cromite + Violentmonkey):
+Install once, on the phone (Cromite + Violentmonkey): sign in to the web UI,
+open the **Userscripts** panel, and open the install link for the library —
+the script is served with your credential already inside it. Its
+`@downloadURL`/`@updateURL` point at the same credential-bearing path for
+updates:
 
 ```
-https://bookmark-api.<your-domain>/u/<API_TOKEN>/manga-bookmark.user.js
+https://bookmark-api.<your-domain>/u/<your credential>/manga-bookmark.user.js
 ```
 
-Open that URL in Cromite; Violentmonkey offers to install it. The token is in
-the path because Violentmonkey's update poll sends no `Authorization` header,
-and the script embeds `API_TOKEN` in plain text — an open URL would leak it. A
-wrong token answers 404.
+Violentmonkey offers to install it. The credential is in the path because
+Violentmonkey's update poll sends no `Authorization` header, and the script
+embeds the credential in plain text — an open URL would leak it. A wrong
+credential answers 404. The credential is derived from `TOKEN_KEY` and never
+appears anywhere but this URL and the rendered script.
 
 Updating, without a redeploy:
 
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index b20830a..4742b15 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -25,7 +25,9 @@ Bromite userscript (isolated world, Shadow DOM UI, localStorage cache)
 
 | Var | Default | Notes |
 |-----|---------|-------|
-| `API_TOKEN` | *(required)* | Bearer token shared with the userscript. |
+| `TOKEN_KEY` | *(required)* | Secret every Reader's userscript credential is derived from (issue #24); only SHA-256 hashes of credentials are stored. |
+| `API_TOKEN` | *(retired)* | Global credential, honoured only until `API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL` for already-installed scripts; remove both after the window. |
+| `API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL` | unset | Moment the retired credential stops resolving to the owner (`YYYY-MM-DD` or RFC3339), enforced in code. |
 | `OWNER_DISCORD_ID` | *(required)* | Discord user ID of the owner; seeds the one Reader all bookmarks belong to. |
 | `ALLOWED_ORIGINS` | Asura + Demonic + Comix + Kagane origins | Comma-separated CORS allowlist. |
 | `DATABASE_URL` | *(required)* | Postgres connection URL, e.g. `postgres://bookmarks:…@postgres:5432/bookmarks?sslmode=disable`. Compose builds it from `POSTGRES_PASSWORD`. |
@@ -36,11 +38,11 @@ Bromite userscript (isolated world, Shadow DOM UI, localStorage cache)
 
 | Method | Path | Auth | Description |
 |--------|------|------|-------------|
-| `GET` | `/bookmarks` | Bearer | All bookmarks (single-user). |
+| `GET` | `/bookmarks` | Bearer | All bookmarks of the acting Reader. |
 | `PUT` | `/bookmarks/{key}` | Bearer | Upsert one series; returns the row as stored. |
 | `DELETE` | `/bookmarks/{key}` | Bearer | Remove one. |
 | `GET` | `/healthz` | none | `200 ok`. |
-| `GET` | `/u/{token}/manga-bookmark.user.js` | token in path | Serves the userscript with an mtime-derived `@version`. |
+| `GET` | `/u/{token}/manga-bookmark.user.js` | credential in path | Serves the userscript with the requesting Reader's credential substituted in and an mtime-derived `@version`. |
 
 `key` is `<site>:<series_id>` — e.g. `asura:trash-of-the-counts-family-f886a8af`,
 `demonic:Infinite-Level-Up-in-Murim`, `comix:12345`, or
@@ -70,7 +72,7 @@ and nothing reaches the network beyond the local Docker daemon.
 
 ```bash
 cp .env.example .env
-# edit .env: set API_TOKEN (openssl rand -hex 32) and
+# edit .env: set TOKEN_KEY (openssl rand -hex 32) and
 #            POSTGRES_PASSWORD (openssl rand -hex 24)
 
 docker compose up -d --build           # binds 127.0.0.1:8080
@@ -114,17 +116,18 @@ CORS headers.
 
 ## 2. Userscript
 
-### Configure
+### Install
 
-Edit the config block at the top of `userscript/manga-bookmark.user.js`:
+Sign in to the web UI and open the **Userscripts** panel: it offers one
+install link per library. Each link serves a script rendered with your own
+credential already inside it — you never see, type or copy a credential. The
+served script carries `@downloadURL`/`@updateURL` pointing at its
+credential-bearing path, so Violentmonkey keeps auto-updating it.
 
-```js
-const API_BASE = "https://bookmark-api.<domain>"; // no trailing slash
-const API_TOKEN = "<same token as backend>";
-```
-
-The token lives in the userscript's **isolated world** — the manga sites' own
-JS cannot read it.
+The bindmounted files carry `__API_TOKEN__` placeholders; the backend
+substitutes the requesting Reader's credential at serve time, so no real
+credential is ever committed. Rotating the credential (same panel) invalidates
+every installed copy immediately — reinstall on all devices.
 
 ### Install on Bromite (mobile)
 
@@ -132,8 +135,8 @@ Bromite runs Chromium's native userscript engine (no Tampermonkey needed):
 
 1. Bromite → **Settings → User scripts** → enable user scripts (allow the
    permission prompt).
-2. Save the configured `manga-bookmark.user.js` to the device (or open its raw
-   URL). Bromite detects the `.user.js` and offers to install it.
+2. Open the install link from the web UI — Bromite detects the `.user.js` and
+   offers to install it.
 3. Confirm the install; the `@match` list covers both sites.
 4. Open a series on either site — a 📑 button appears bottom-right.
 
diff --git a/REDEPLOY.md b/REDEPLOY.md
index 38d1675..a2b5694 100644
--- a/REDEPLOY.md
+++ b/REDEPLOY.md
@@ -224,6 +224,8 @@ Same four API checks as `DEPLOY.md` §3, plus the web UI. Set the host names onc
 ```bash
 API=https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id
 WEB=https://bookmark.violetcrown.my.id
+# During the grace window the retired global credential still resolves to the
+# owner; afterwards it is 401 like any other wrong credential.
 TOKEN=$(grep -E '^API_TOKEN=' .env | cut -d= -f2)
 
 curl -s $API/healthz                                            # -> ok
diff --git a/backend/AGENTS.md b/backend/AGENTS.md
index aee786b..3ddb6e4 100644
--- a/backend/AGENTS.md
+++ b/backend/AGENTS.md
@@ -21,9 +21,9 @@ Guidance for OpenCode (and Claude Code) working under `backend/`. See root `AGEN
   container per test binary (`TestMain` -> `pgtest.Main`) and hands each test
   its own database (`pgtest.URL(t)`). A package whose tests touch the store
   must have that `TestMain`.
-- **Single-owner store, three tables.** `readers` is keyed by Discord user ID
-  and carries the SHA-256 of the owner's userscript token (the global
-  `API_TOKEN` today; issue #22). The seed creates exactly one row at startup.
+- **Single-owner store, four tables.** `readers` is keyed by Discord user ID
+  and carries the SHA-256 of the Reader's userscript credential plus a
+  `token_epoch` (issue #24). Credentials are derived, never stored: `token.Token(TOKEN_KEY, discord_id, epoch)` (HMAC, `internal/token`), and only its SHA-256 sits in `readers.token_sha256`, so install URLs can be rebuilt after any restart while a database leak yields nothing but hashes. The seed creates exactly one row at startup; its epoch-0 hash is refreshed on every start **only while the row has never been rotated**, so a restart can never resurrect a rotated-away credential. Rotation is `Store.RotateToken` (epoch bump + hash rewrite in one transaction), driven by the web UI.
   `series` keyed `(site, series_id)`
   (`asura`|`demonic`|`comix`|`kagane`|`novelfull`|`lightnovelworld`) owns the
   shared facts — title, cover, canonical URL, `kind` (`manga`|`novel`),
@@ -31,12 +31,14 @@ Guidance for OpenCode (and Claude Code) working under `backend/`. See root `AGEN
   differs between readers: progress, favourite, lifecycle bucket,
   `updated_at`. A bookmark is keyed `(reader_id, site, series_id)` — no
   surrogate id; the wire `key` is derived as `site:series_id` on read — and
-  every store read/write is scoped to the reader it names. `Store.OwnerID()`
-  is the seeded owner, which every handler passes while the global token is
-  still the only credential. Sync **last-write-wins**; the wire format stays
-  flat (ADR-0004). `Store.Upsert` decomposes one flat body across two tables
-  and enforces the ownership rule: client `title`/`series_url`/`cover` are
-  written only when the series row is new (ADR-0003).
+  every store read/write is scoped to the reader it names. Auth resolves the
+  acting Reader from the presented credential (`httpmw.Auth`), and the
+  reader id travels in the request context; the retired global `API_TOKEN`
+  additionally resolves to the owner until `API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL`, with
+  every such acceptance logged. Sync **last-write-wins**; the wire format
+  stays flat (ADR-0004). `Store.Upsert` decomposes one flat body across two
+  tables and enforces the ownership rule: client `title`/`series_url`/`cover`
+  are written only when the series row is new (ADR-0003).
 - **Endpoints:** `GET /bookmarks`, `PUT /bookmarks/{key}` (upsert; see `updated_at` rule below), `DELETE /bookmarks/{key}`, `GET /healthz` (no auth).
 - **Web UI:** same binary serve the browser UI on a second
   hostname — `GET /` (list, or login page when no session),
@@ -101,7 +103,10 @@ Guidance for OpenCode (and Claude Code) working under `backend/`. See root `AGEN
   `excluded.*` is post-evaluation row and default applied there would
   wipe bucket on every PUT from client that predates column. See
   `docs/superpowers/specs/2026-07-27-status-buckets-design.md`.
-- **Config via env:** `API_TOKEN`, `OWNER_DISCORD_ID` (seeds the owner Reader;
+- **Config via env:** `TOKEN_KEY` (derives every Reader's userscript credential;
+  required), `API_TOKEN` + `API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL` (retired global credential
+  and the moment it stops resolving to the owner — both removed after the
+  cutover window, enforced in code), `OWNER_DISCORD_ID` (seeds the owner Reader;
   required), `ALLOWED_ORIGINS` (comma list),
   `DATABASE_URL` (Postgres connection URL, required — no default),
   `PORT` (default `8080`), `DISCORD_CLIENT_ID`/`_CLIENT_SECRET`/`_GUILD_ID`/
@@ -113,7 +118,15 @@ Guidance for OpenCode (and Claude Code) working under `backend/`. See root `AGEN
   `USERSCRIPT_PATH` and `NOVEL_USERSCRIPT_PATH` (files served at
   `/u/{token}/manga-bookmark.user.js` and `/u/{token}/novel-bookmark.user.js`,
   defaults `/userscript/manga-bookmark.user.js` and
-  `/userscript/novel-bookmark.user.js`, both supplied by bindmount).
+  `/userscript/novel-bookmark.user.js`, both supplied by bindmount; the
+  `__API_TOKEN__` placeholder inside them is substituted with the requesting
+  Reader's credential at serve time).
   `BROWSER_WS_URL` (headless-shell CDP endpoint for kagane and novelfull;
   unset disables browser polling and leaves those sites to the userscript
   alone).
+- **Web UI also owns:** session-gated `GET /install/{manga,novel}-bookmark.user.js`
+  (renders the bindmounted script with the acting Reader's derived credential
+  substituted in — the credential never appears in page markup, the address
+  bar, or a redirect) and `POST /rotate-token` (atomic epoch bump + hash
+  rewrite; invalidates every installed copy, so the panel warns to reinstall
+  on all devices).
diff --git a/backend/api_test.go b/backend/api_test.go
index 187e9f1..a4a80c4 100644
--- a/backend/api_test.go
+++ b/backend/api_test.go
@@ -2,7 +2,6 @@ package main
 
 import (
 	"bytes"
-	"crypto/sha256"
 	"encoding/json"
 	"fmt"
 	"net/http"
@@ -15,18 +14,36 @@ import (
 
 	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/pgtest"
 	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/store"
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/token"
 )
 
 const testToken = "s3cret-token"
 
+// testTokenKey derives every test Reader's credential; it must match the key
+// newTestStoreURL seeds the owner with, or derived credentials authenticate
+// nothing.
+const testTokenKey = "test-token-key"
+
+// testDiscordID is the owner row's discord_id (newTestStoreURL); the derived
+// credential is a function of it.
+const testDiscordID = "test-owner"
+
 func testConfig() Config {
 	return Config{
 		Token:          testToken,
+		TokenKey:       testTokenKey,
+		GraceUntil:     time.Now().Add(24 * time.Hour),
 		AllowedOrigins: []string{"https://asuracomic.net", "https://demonicscans.org"},
 		Port:           "8080",
 	}
 }
 
+// ownerCredential is the owner's epoch-0 derived credential: the string the
+// install links carry and the userscript routes authenticate.
+func ownerCredential() string {
+	return token.Token([]byte(testTokenKey), testDiscordID, 0)
+}
+
 func TestMain(m *testing.M) { os.Exit(pgtest.Main(m)) }
 
 func newTestServer(t *testing.T) http.Handler {
@@ -46,7 +63,7 @@ func newTestStoreURL(t *testing.T) (*store.Store, string) {
 	t.Helper()
 	url := pgtest.URL(t)
 	s, err := store.Open(url, store.Owner{
-		DiscordID: "test-owner", TokenHash: sha256.Sum256([]byte("owner-token-hash")),
+		DiscordID: testDiscordID, TokenHash: token.Hash(ownerCredential()),
 	})
 	if err != nil {
 		t.Fatalf("store.Open: %v", err)
@@ -602,10 +619,11 @@ func TestPutDoesNotClobberLatestCheckedAt(t *testing.T) {
 
 // The userscript route is registered outside the web UI's Discord auth, so it
 // must keep working whatever the web config — see internal/userscript for the
-// handler's own behaviour.
+// handler's own behaviour. The credential in the path is the owner's derived
+// one, and the served script carries it substituted in.
 func TestUserscriptServedWithWebUIDisabled(t *testing.T) {
 	path := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "manga-bookmark.user.js")
-	if err := os.WriteFile(path, []byte("console.log(1);\n"), 0o644); err != nil {
+	if err := os.WriteFile(path, []byte("const API_TOKEN = \"__API_TOKEN__\";\n"), 0o644); err != nil {
 		t.Fatalf("write script: %v", err)
 	}
 
@@ -614,15 +632,18 @@ func TestUserscriptServedWithWebUIDisabled(t *testing.T) {
 	cfg.UserscriptPath = path
 
 	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
-	req := httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/u/"+testToken+"/manga-bookmark.user.js", nil)
+	req := httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/u/"+ownerCredential()+"/manga-bookmark.user.js", nil)
 	newRouter(s, cfg).ServeHTTP(rr, req)
 	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
 		t.Fatalf("status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
 	}
+	if got := rr.Body.String(); !strings.Contains(got, `API_TOKEN = "`+ownerCredential()+`"`) {
+		t.Fatalf("served script does not carry the requesting Reader's credential:\n%s", got)
+	}
 }
 
-// Both scripts are served from the same handler on the same token, outside the
-// web UI's auth — a wrong token is a 404, never a 401.
+// Both scripts are served from the same handler, outside the web UI's auth —
+// a wrong credential is a 404, never a 401.
 func TestNovelUserscriptServed(t *testing.T) {
 	dir := t.TempDir()
 	novelPath := filepath.Join(dir, "novel-bookmark.user.js")
@@ -638,7 +659,7 @@ func TestNovelUserscriptServed(t *testing.T) {
 
 	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
 	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet,
-		"/u/"+testToken+"/novel-bookmark.user.js", nil))
+		"/u/"+ownerCredential()+"/novel-bookmark.user.js", nil))
 	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
 		t.Fatalf("status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
 	}
diff --git a/backend/internal/api/handlers.go b/backend/internal/api/handlers.go
index 7328084..ae918ea 100644
--- a/backend/internal/api/handlers.go
+++ b/backend/internal/api/handlers.go
@@ -7,15 +7,13 @@ import (
 	"strings"
 	"time"
 
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/httpmw"
 	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/store"
 )
 
 // Handler serves the userscript-facing JSON bookmark API.
 type Handler struct {
 	Store *store.Store
-	// ReaderID is the Reader this request acts as. Authentication is still the
-	// single global token, so that is always the seeded owner (issue #22).
-	ReaderID int64
 }
 
 func writeJSON(w http.ResponseWriter, status int, v any) {
@@ -30,7 +28,7 @@ func writeJSON(w http.ResponseWriter, status int, v any) {
 
 // List returns all bookmarks of the acting Reader. GET /bookmarks
 func (h *Handler) List(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
-	items, err := h.Store.List(h.ReaderID)
+	items, err := h.Store.List(httpmw.ReaderID(r))
 	if err != nil {
 		log.Printf("list: %v", err)
 		http.Error(w, "internal error", http.StatusInternalServerError)
@@ -94,7 +92,7 @@ func (h *Handler) Put(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	// reading progress actually moved. Any client value is ignored.
 	b.UpdatedAt = time.Now().UnixMilli()
 
-	stored, err := h.Store.Upsert(h.ReaderID, b)
+	stored, err := h.Store.Upsert(httpmw.ReaderID(r), b)
 	if err != nil {
 		log.Printf("upsert: %v", err)
 		http.Error(w, "internal error", http.StatusInternalServerError)
@@ -112,7 +110,7 @@ func (h *Handler) Delete(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 		http.Error(w, "missing key", http.StatusBadRequest)
 		return
 	}
-	if err := h.Store.Delete(h.ReaderID, key); err != nil {
+	if err := h.Store.Delete(httpmw.ReaderID(r), key); err != nil {
 		log.Printf("delete: %v", err)
 		http.Error(w, "internal error", http.StatusInternalServerError)
 		return
diff --git a/backend/internal/httpmw/middleware.go b/backend/internal/httpmw/middleware.go
index e609531..a233969 100644
--- a/backend/internal/httpmw/middleware.go
+++ b/backend/internal/httpmw/middleware.go
@@ -2,28 +2,68 @@ package httpmw
 
 import (
 	"compress/gzip"
+	"context"
 	"crypto/subtle"
+	"log"
 	"net/http"
 	"strings"
+	"time"
+
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/store"
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/token"
 )
 
 const bearerPrefix = "Bearer "
 
-// Auth guards a handler with a constant-time bearer-token check.
-func Auth(token string, next http.Handler) http.Handler {
-	want := []byte(token)
+type ctxKey int
+
+// readerCtxKey is where Auth stashes the authenticated Reader id.
+const readerCtxKey ctxKey = iota
+
+// ReaderID returns the Reader id Auth authenticated, for handlers that take
+// the acting Reader from the request rather than from a fixed field.
+func ReaderID(r *http.Request) int64 { return r.Context().Value(readerCtxKey).(int64) }
+
+// ResolveReader maps a presented credential to a Reader. The credential is
+// hashed and matched against readers.token_sha256 — an equality on 32-byte
+// values, never a comparison of the credential itself — and, during the
+// cutover window, the retired global token resolves to the owner. Every
+// legacy acceptance is logged so the window can be confirmed empty before
+// the token is removed. The same resolution backs the API bearer header and
+// the userscript download path, so the window covers both.
+func ResolveReader(s *store.Store, legacy string, graceUntil time.Time, cred string) (int64, bool) {
+	if readerID, ok, err := s.ReaderIDForTokenHash(token.Hash(cred)); err != nil {
+		log.Printf("auth: reader lookup: %v", err)
+		return 0, false
+	} else if ok {
+		return readerID, true
+	}
+
+	if legacy != "" && time.Now().Before(graceUntil) &&
+		subtle.ConstantTimeCompare([]byte(cred), []byte(legacy)) == 1 {
+		log.Printf("auth: retired global token accepted for owner reader %d (grace until %s)",
+			s.OwnerID(), graceUntil.Format(time.RFC3339))
+		return s.OwnerID(), true
+	}
+	return 0, false
+}
+
+// Auth guards a handler with a per-Reader bearer credential. The acting
+// Reader travels in the request context, so a handler scopes every store call
+// to exactly the Reader that authenticated.
+func Auth(s *store.Store, legacy string, graceUntil time.Time, next http.Handler) http.Handler {
 	return http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 		h := r.Header.Get("Authorization")
 		if !strings.HasPrefix(h, bearerPrefix) {
 			http.Error(w, "unauthorized", http.StatusUnauthorized)
 			return
 		}
-		got := []byte(strings.TrimPrefix(h, bearerPrefix))
-		if subtle.ConstantTimeCompare(got, want) != 1 {
+		readerID, ok := ResolveReader(s, legacy, graceUntil, strings.TrimPrefix(h, bearerPrefix))
+		if !ok {
 			http.Error(w, "unauthorized", http.StatusUnauthorized)
 			return
 		}
-		next.ServeHTTP(w, r)
+		next.ServeHTTP(w, r.WithContext(context.WithValue(r.Context(), readerCtxKey, readerID)))
 	})
 }
 
diff --git a/backend/internal/store/migrations/0006_reader_token_epoch.sql b/backend/internal/store/migrations/0006_reader_token_epoch.sql
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4160eac
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/internal/store/migrations/0006_reader_token_epoch.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+-- Rotation is an epoch bump: a Reader's credential is derived from the
+-- deployment secret, their Discord id and this epoch, so bumping it issues a
+-- new credential and the rewritten token_sha256 invalidates the old one the
+-- moment the transaction commits. The seed's ON CONFLICT refresh (Store.Open)
+-- is gated on this being 0, so a restart can never undo a rotation by
+-- restoring the epoch-0 hash.
+ALTER TABLE readers ADD COLUMN token_epoch bigint NOT NULL DEFAULT 0;
diff --git a/backend/internal/store/store.go b/backend/internal/store/store.go
index a89ada8..de2a911 100644
--- a/backend/internal/store/store.go
+++ b/backend/internal/store/store.go
@@ -171,12 +171,12 @@ const seriesColumns = `s.site, s.series_id, s.title, s.series_url, s.cover,
 
 // Owner is the person running the service: the first Reader, and the only one
 // until registration exists. The seed makes sure exactly one readers row
-// matches their Discord ID, carrying the SHA-256 of their userscript token —
-// which today is the global API token.
+// matches their Discord ID, carrying the SHA-256 of their epoch-0 userscript
+// credential (derived by internal/token, not the retired global token).
 type Owner struct {
 	DiscordID string
-	// TokenHash is the SHA-256 of the userscript token; the array shape makes
-	// it a compile error to store anything that is not a hash.
+	// TokenHash is the SHA-256 of the epoch-0 credential; the array shape
+	// makes it a compile error to store anything that is not a hash.
 	TokenHash [32]byte
 }
 
@@ -189,10 +189,69 @@ type Store struct {
 	ownerID int64
 }
 
-// OwnerID returns the seeded owner Reader's id — the Reader every request
-// acts as while the global token is still the only credential.
+// OwnerID returns the seeded owner Reader's id — the Reader the retired
+// global token resolves to during the grace window, and the only Reader while
+// registration is closed.
 func (s *Store) OwnerID() int64 { return s.ownerID }
 
+// ReaderIDForTokenHash resolves the Reader whose stored credential hash
+// matches, reporting absence with ok=false. The comparison is an equality on
+// the 32-byte SHA-256 of the presented credential — never on the credential
+// itself — and the indexed lookup reveals only whether some Reader matches,
+// which the 401/200 split has to reveal anyway. An attacker's probe is the
+// hash of their guess, so even the index's prefix comparisons leak nothing
+// about the real credential.
+func (s *Store) ReaderIDForTokenHash(hash [32]byte) (int64, bool, error) {
+	var id int64
+	err := s.db.QueryRow(
+		`SELECT id FROM readers WHERE token_sha256 = $1`, hash[:]).Scan(&id)
+	if errors.Is(err, sql.ErrNoRows) {
+		return 0, false, nil
+	}
+	if err != nil {
+		return 0, false, fmt.Errorf("reader by token hash: %w", err)
+	}
+	return id, true, nil
+}
+
+// ReaderTokenInfo returns the identity halves a Reader's credential is
+// derived from (internal/token.Token): their Discord id and token epoch. The
+// web UI needs these to rebuild the install URL — the only place a credential
+// is ever produced in plaintext.
+func (s *Store) ReaderTokenInfo(readerID int64) (string, int64, error) {
+	var (
+		discordID string
+		epoch     int64
+	)
+	err := s.db.QueryRow(
+		`SELECT discord_id, token_epoch FROM readers WHERE id = $1`, readerID).
+		Scan(&discordID, &epoch)
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", 0, fmt.Errorf("reader %d token info: %w", readerID, err)
+	}
+	return discordID, epoch, nil
+}
+
+// RotateToken bumps a Reader's token epoch and rewrites the stored hash in
+// one statement, so the new hash always matches the new epoch. expectedEpoch
+// is the epoch the caller derived newHash for (ReaderTokenInfo + 1); a
+// concurrent rotation — or an unknown reader — leaves the row untouched and
+// is reported as an error rather than silently succeeding.
+func (s *Store) RotateToken(readerID, expectedEpoch int64, newHash [32]byte) error {
+	var epoch int64
+	err := s.db.QueryRow(`
+		UPDATE readers SET token_epoch = token_epoch + 1, token_sha256 = $3
+		WHERE id = $1 AND token_epoch = $2
+		RETURNING token_epoch`, readerID, expectedEpoch, newHash[:]).Scan(&epoch)
+	if errors.Is(err, sql.ErrNoRows) {
+		return fmt.Errorf("rotate token for reader %d: concurrent rotation or unknown reader", readerID)
+	}
+	if err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("rotate token for reader %d: %w", readerID, err)
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
 // readersMigration is the version that creates the readers table. The owner
 // seed runs between two migrate passes, so that the run-once migration which
 // attaches existing bookmarks (0004) finds the owner row.
@@ -217,6 +276,10 @@ func Open(url string, owner Owner) (*Store, error) {
 		db.Close()
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("migrate schema: %w", err)
 	}
+	// The owner row must exist before 0004 attaches the existing bookmarks to
+	// it. The hash refresh is a separate statement after all migrations: the
+	// token_epoch column 0006 adds does not exist yet at this point, and the
+	// refresh only ever concerns rows that have never been rotated.
 	if err := seedOwner(db, owner); err != nil {
 		db.Close()
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("seed owner: %w", err)
@@ -225,6 +288,10 @@ func Open(url string, owner Owner) (*Store, error) {
 		db.Close()
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("migrate: %w", err)
 	}
+	if err := refreshOwnerToken(db, owner); err != nil {
+		db.Close()
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("refresh owner token: %w", err)
+	}
 	var ownerID int64
 	if err := db.QueryRow(
 		`SELECT id FROM readers WHERE discord_id = $1`, owner.DiscordID).Scan(&ownerID); err != nil {
@@ -234,19 +301,36 @@ func Open(url string, owner Owner) (*Store, error) {
 	return &Store{db: db, ownerID: ownerID}, nil
 }
 
-// seedOwner makes sure the configured owner exists as exactly one readers row,
-// and keeps its token hash current on every start: rotating the userscript
-// token must refresh the hash, or the stored credential goes stale.
+// seedOwner makes sure the configured owner exists as exactly one readers row.
+// The hash is only ever written here for a brand-new row; existing rows keep
+// what they have until refreshOwnerToken decides otherwise, so the seed can
+// never clobber a rotation.
 func seedOwner(db *sql.DB, o Owner) error {
 	if _, err := db.Exec(`
 		INSERT INTO readers (discord_id, token_sha256) VALUES ($1, $2)
-		ON CONFLICT (discord_id) DO UPDATE SET token_sha256 = EXCLUDED.token_sha256`,
+		ON CONFLICT (discord_id) DO NOTHING`,
 		o.DiscordID, o.TokenHash[:]); err != nil {
 		return fmt.Errorf("seed owner: %w", err)
 	}
 	return nil
 }
 
+// refreshOwnerToken brings a never-rotated owner row's hash current with the
+// configured credential. That is the cutover path: a database seeded under
+// the retired global token still carries its hash at epoch 0, and the
+// epoch-0 derivation is the caller's TokenHash. A rotated row (epoch > 0) is
+// left alone — a restart must not resurrect the old credential by
+// overwriting the hash a rotation wrote.
+func refreshOwnerToken(db *sql.DB, o Owner) error {
+	if _, err := db.Exec(`
+		UPDATE readers SET token_sha256 = $2
+		WHERE discord_id = $1 AND token_epoch = 0`,
+		o.DiscordID, o.TokenHash[:]); err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("refresh owner token: %w", err)
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
 // migrate applies every embedded migration this database has not recorded, in
 // filename order, each in its own transaction. upto caps the highest version
 // applied; 0 means all. Files are named "<version>_<name>.sql" and are
diff --git a/backend/internal/store/store_test.go b/backend/internal/store/store_test.go
index e57efd5..c5bfaa6 100644
--- a/backend/internal/store/store_test.go
+++ b/backend/internal/store/store_test.go
@@ -75,6 +75,92 @@ func TestOpenIsIdempotent(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// The hash lookup is the whole authentication path: the store resolves a
+// Reader from the SHA-256 of their presented credential, and nothing else.
+func TestReaderIDForTokenHash(t *testing.T) {
+	store := newTestStore(t)
+	ownerHash := sha256.Sum256([]byte("owner-token-hash"))
+
+	id, ok, err := store.ReaderIDForTokenHash(ownerHash)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("ReaderIDForTokenHash: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !ok || id != store.OwnerID() {
+		t.Fatalf("owner lookup = (%d, %v), want (%d, true)", id, ok, store.OwnerID())
+	}
+
+	if _, ok, err := store.ReaderIDForTokenHash(sha256.Sum256([]byte("nope"))); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("miss: %v", err)
+	} else if ok {
+		t.Fatal("unknown hash resolved to a Reader")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestReaderTokenInfo(t *testing.T) {
+	store := newTestStore(t)
+	discordID, epoch, err := store.ReaderTokenInfo(store.OwnerID())
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("ReaderTokenInfo: %v", err)
+	}
+	if discordID != testOwner.DiscordID || epoch != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("ReaderTokenInfo = (%q, %d), want (%q, 0)", discordID, epoch, testOwner.DiscordID)
+	}
+}
+
+// Rotation swaps the stored hash and bumps the epoch in one step, and the
+// seed must not undo it: a restart re-runs seedOwner, which refreshes the
+// epoch-0 hash only while the row has never been rotated.
+func TestRotateTokenInvalidatesOldAndSurvivesRestart(t *testing.T) {
+	url := pgtest.URL(t)
+	store, err := Open(url, testOwner)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Open: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	oldHash := sha256.Sum256([]byte("owner-token-hash"))
+	newHash := sha256.Sum256([]byte("rotated-token-hash"))
+	if err := store.RotateToken(store.OwnerID(), 0, newHash); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("RotateToken: %v", err)
+	}
+	// A second rotation against the stale epoch is refused: the stored hash
+	// must never describe a different epoch than the column says.
+	if err := store.RotateToken(store.OwnerID(), 0, sha256.Sum256([]byte("third-hash"))); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("stale-epoch rotation succeeded, want error")
+	}
+	if _, ok, err := store.ReaderIDForTokenHash(oldHash); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("old lookup: %v", err)
+	} else if ok {
+		t.Fatal("old hash still resolves after rotation")
+	}
+	if id, ok, err := store.ReaderIDForTokenHash(newHash); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("new lookup: %v", err)
+	} else if !ok || id != store.OwnerID() {
+		t.Fatalf("new hash resolved to (%d, %v), want owner", id, ok)
+	}
+	if _, epoch, err := store.ReaderTokenInfo(store.OwnerID()); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("ReaderTokenInfo: %v", err)
+	} else if epoch != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("epoch = %d after rotation, want 1", epoch)
+	}
+	store.Close()
+
+	reopened, err := Open(url, testOwner)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("reopen: %v", err)
+	}
+	t.Cleanup(func() { reopened.Close() })
+	if _, ok, err := reopened.ReaderIDForTokenHash(oldHash); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("old lookup after reopen: %v", err)
+	} else if ok {
+		t.Fatal("restart resurrected the pre-rotation hash")
+	}
+	if _, ok, err := reopened.ReaderIDForTokenHash(newHash); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("new lookup after reopen: %v", err)
+	} else if !ok {
+		t.Fatal("restart dropped the rotated hash")
+	}
+}
+
 func TestStoreGet(t *testing.T) {
 	store := newTestStore(t)
 	if _, err := store.Upsert(store.OwnerID(), Bookmark{
diff --git a/backend/internal/token/token.go b/backend/internal/token/token.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5dc0b21
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/internal/token/token.go
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+package token
+
+import (
+	"crypto/hmac"
+	"crypto/sha256"
+	"encoding/hex"
+	"strconv"
+)
+
+// Token derives one Reader's userscript credential from the deployment
+// secret, the Reader's Discord id and their token epoch.
+//
+// The credential is deterministic rather than stored random because the
+// server must be able to rebuild the install URL after a restart while the
+// database holds only hashes: a random token with no plaintext copy anywhere
+// would be unreconstructible, and keeping plaintext in memory would break
+// every install link on restart. HMAC output is high-entropy, indistinguishable
+// from random to anyone without the secret, and changes whenever the epoch
+// does — which is what rotation is. The stored form is Hash of this value,
+// so a database leak yields nothing but hashes of unguessable strings.
+func Token(key []byte, discordID string, epoch int64) string {
+	mac := hmac.New(sha256.New, key)
+	// The separator is unambiguous: discord ids are decimal snowflakes and
+	// epochs are plain integers, so no two (id, epoch) pairs can collide.
+	mac.Write([]byte(discordID))
+	mac.Write([]byte{0})
+	mac.Write([]byte(strconv.FormatInt(epoch, 10)))
+	return hex.EncodeToString(mac.Sum(nil))
+}
+
+// Hash is the SHA-256 of a credential — the only form that ever touches the
+// database (readers.token_sha256). SHA-256 rather than a password hash is
+// deliberate: these are unguessable values with nothing to brute-force, so a
+// slow hash would only add per-request cost.
+func Hash(cred string) [32]byte {
+	return sha256.Sum256([]byte(cred))
+}
diff --git a/backend/internal/token/token_test.go b/backend/internal/token/token_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b7e4065
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/internal/token/token_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,53 @@
+package token
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"crypto/sha256"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestTokenDeterministicPerReaderAndEpoch(t *testing.T) {
+	key := []byte("deployment-secret")
+	a := Token(key, "reader-1", 0)
+	b := Token(key, "reader-1", 0)
+	if a != b {
+		t.Fatal("same (reader, epoch) derived different credentials")
+	}
+	if a == Token(key, "reader-2", 0) {
+		t.Fatal("different readers derived the same credential")
+	}
+	if a == Token(key, "reader-1", 1) {
+		t.Fatal("rotation epoch derived the same credential")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestTokenChangesWithSecret(t *testing.T) {
+	a := Token([]byte("key-1"), "reader-1", 0)
+	b := Token([]byte("key-2"), "reader-1", 0)
+	if a == b {
+		t.Fatal("different secrets derived the same credential")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestTokenFormat(t *testing.T) {
+	cred := Token([]byte("key"), "reader-1", 0)
+	// 32 bytes of HMAC-SHA256, hex-encoded: the length the install URL and
+	// the committed placeholder both assume.
+	if len(cred) != 64 {
+		t.Fatalf("credential length = %d, want 64", len(cred))
+	}
+	for _, c := range cred {
+		if !(c >= '0' && c <= '9' || c >= 'a' && c <= 'f') {
+			t.Fatalf("credential contains non-hex byte %q", c)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestHashIsSha256OfCredential(t *testing.T) {
+	cred := Token([]byte("key"), "reader-1", 0)
+	got := Hash(cred)
+	want := sha256.Sum256([]byte(cred))
+	if !bytes.Equal(got[:], want[:]) {
+		t.Fatal("Hash is not the SHA-256 of the credential")
+	}
+}
diff --git a/backend/internal/userscript/userscript.go b/backend/internal/userscript/userscript.go
index c714d90..6f189ba 100644
--- a/backend/internal/userscript/userscript.go
+++ b/backend/internal/userscript/userscript.go
@@ -1,14 +1,25 @@
 package userscript
 
 import (
-	"crypto/subtle"
+	"bytes"
 	"log"
 	"net/http"
 	"os"
 	"regexp"
 	"time"
+
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/httpmw"
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/store"
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/token"
 )
 
+// tokenPlaceholder is what the bindmounted userscript carries where the
+// Reader's credential goes: in the API_TOKEN constant and in the @downloadURL
+// and @updateURL metadata lines. The handler substitutes the requesting
+// Reader's credential for it at serve time, so no credential literal is ever
+// committed or deployed, and each Reader's copy carries exactly their own.
+var tokenPlaceholder = []byte("__API_TOKEN__")
+
 // versionLine matches the userscript metadata block's @version directive.
 var versionLine = regexp.MustCompile(`(?m)^// @version[ \t]+.*$`)
 
@@ -26,35 +37,76 @@ func stampVersion(src []byte, mod time.Time) []byte {
 	return versionLine.ReplaceAll(src, []byte("// @version      "+mod.UTC().Format("2006.01.02.1504")))
 }
 
-// userscriptHandler serves the userscript to Violentmonkey's updater.
+// substituteToken replaces every tokenPlaceholder with the Reader's
+// credential. A file without the placeholder is returned unchanged so Render
+// can warn about it rather than silently serving a credential-less script.
+func substituteToken(src []byte, credential string) []byte {
+	return bytes.ReplaceAll(src, tokenPlaceholder, []byte(credential))
+}
+
+// Render writes one userscript file with the credential substituted and the
+// mtime-derived version stamped. Shared by the download path (Handler) and
+// the web UI's install endpoints, so both serve byte-identical scripts.
 //
-// The token lives in the path because the update poll sends no Authorization
-// header, and the file embeds API_TOKEN in plain text, so an open path would
-// hand that token to anyone who guessed the URL. A mismatch answers 404 rather
-// than 401: a prober learns nothing about whether the route exists.
+// The file is read per request — that is what lets a bindmounted copy be
+// edited on the host without a restart. It is ~50 KB and polled about once a
+// day.
+func Render(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request, path, credential string) {
+	info, err := os.Stat(path)
+	if err != nil {
+		log.Printf("userscript: stat %s: %v", path, err)
+		http.NotFound(w, r)
+		return
+	}
+	src, err := os.ReadFile(path)
+	if err != nil {
+		log.Printf("userscript: read %s: %v", path, err)
+		http.NotFound(w, r)
+		return
+	}
+	rendered := substituteToken(src, credential)
+	if bytes.Equal(rendered, src) {
+		// The bindmounted file was not built for per-Reader rendering. Serving
+		// it as written is the operator's freedom, but a credential-less copy
+		// is a deployment bug worth one log line — the symptom (silent 401s on
+		// every device) is otherwise indistinguishable from a network fault.
+		log.Printf("userscript: %s has no %s placeholder; serving as written", path, tokenPlaceholder)
+	}
+	w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "text/javascript; charset=utf-8")
+	w.Header().Set("Cache-Control", "no-cache")
+	w.Write(stampVersion(rendered, info.ModTime()))
+}
+
+// Handler serves the userscript to Violentmonkey's updater, rendered for the
+// Reader whose credential is in the path.
 //
-// The file is read per request — that is what lets a bindmounted copy be edited
-// on the host without a restart. It is ~50 KB and polled about once a day.
-func Handler(token, path string) http.HandlerFunc {
+// The credential lives in the path because the update poll sends no
+// Authorization header, and the rendered file embeds the credential in
+// plaintext, so an open path would hand it to anyone who guessed the URL. A
+// mismatch answers 404 rather than 401: a prober learns nothing about whether
+// the route exists. The same credential authenticates the API bearer header,
+// so the two are one secret with one blast radius.
+//
+// The credential substituted is the resolved Reader's derived one, not the
+// raw path segment: while the retired global token is still accepted during
+// the grace window (httpmw.ResolveReader), an already-installed script
+// polling its legacy URL is served a copy carrying the Reader's own
+// credential, so the next update poll migrates the device onto its per-Reader
+// path — the window empties itself instead of ending in a silent 401 for
+// every device that never visited the web UI.
+func Handler(s *store.Store, tokenKey []byte, legacy string, graceUntil time.Time, path string) http.HandlerFunc {
 	return func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
-		if subtle.ConstantTimeCompare([]byte(r.PathValue("token")), []byte(token)) != 1 {
+		readerID, ok := httpmw.ResolveReader(s, legacy, graceUntil, r.PathValue("token"))
+		if !ok {
 			http.NotFound(w, r)
 			return
 		}
-		info, err := os.Stat(path)
+		discordID, epoch, err := s.ReaderTokenInfo(readerID)
 		if err != nil {
-			log.Printf("userscript: stat %s: %v", path, err)
+			log.Printf("userscript: reader %d token info: %v", readerID, err)
 			http.NotFound(w, r)
 			return
 		}
-		src, err := os.ReadFile(path)
-		if err != nil {
-			log.Printf("userscript: read %s: %v", path, err)
-			http.NotFound(w, r)
-			return
-		}
-		w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "text/javascript; charset=utf-8")
-		w.Header().Set("Cache-Control", "no-cache")
-		w.Write(stampVersion(src, info.ModTime()))
+		Render(w, r, path, token.Token(tokenKey, discordID, epoch))
 	}
 }
diff --git a/backend/internal/userscript/userscript_test.go b/backend/internal/userscript/userscript_test.go
index 3196342..471d40a 100644
--- a/backend/internal/userscript/userscript_test.go
+++ b/backend/internal/userscript/userscript_test.go
@@ -1,115 +1,67 @@
 package userscript
 
 import (
-	"net/http"
-	"net/http/httptest"
-	"os"
-	"path/filepath"
 	"strings"
 	"testing"
 	"time"
 )
 
-const testToken = "s3cret-token"
-
 // sampleScript is a stand-in for the real userscript: a metadata block with a
-// @version line, plus a body that must survive the rewrite untouched.
+// @version line, the credential placeholder in its metadata and body, plus
+// content that must survive the rewrites untouched.
 const sampleScript = `// ==UserScript==
 // @name         Manga Bookmark Sync
 // @version      1.5.0
+// @downloadURL  https://api.example/u/__API_TOKEN__/manga-bookmark.user.js
 // @match        https://asurascans.com/*
 // ==/UserScript==
-(function () { "use strict"; })();
+(function () { "use strict";
+  const API_TOKEN = "__API_TOKEN__";
+})();
 `
 
-// writeScript drops a userscript in a temp dir with a known mtime and returns
-// its path plus the version string the handler is expected to stamp.
-func writeScript(t *testing.T, body string) (path, wantVersion string) {
-	t.Helper()
-	path = filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "manga-bookmark.user.js")
-	if err := os.WriteFile(path, []byte(body), 0o644); err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("write script: %v", err)
-	}
+func TestStampVersionReplacesVersionLineOnly(t *testing.T) {
 	mod := time.Date(2026, 7, 28, 16, 42, 0, 0, time.UTC)
-	if err := os.Chtimes(path, mod, mod); err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("chtimes: %v", err)
-	}
-	return path, "2026.07.28.1642"
-}
+	got := string(stampVersion([]byte(sampleScript), mod))
 
-// newTestMux registers Handler the same way main.go's router does, without
-// pulling in the store or the rest of the app.
-func newTestMux(token, path string) http.Handler {
-	mux := http.NewServeMux()
-	mux.HandleFunc("GET /u/{token}/manga-bookmark.user.js", Handler(token, path))
-	return mux
-}
-
-func getScript(t *testing.T, srv http.Handler, token string) *httptest.ResponseRecorder {
-	t.Helper()
-	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
-	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/u/"+token+"/manga-bookmark.user.js", nil))
-	return rr
-}
-
-func TestUserscriptServedWithStampedVersion(t *testing.T) {
-	path, wantVersion := writeScript(t, sampleScript)
-	rr := getScript(t, newTestMux(testToken, path), testToken)
-
-	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
-		t.Fatalf("status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
+	if !strings.Contains(got, "// @version      "+mod.UTC().Format("2006.01.02.1504")) {
+		t.Errorf("body has no stamped version:\n%s", got)
 	}
-	if ct := rr.Header().Get("Content-Type"); !strings.HasPrefix(ct, "text/javascript") {
-		t.Errorf("Content-Type = %q, want text/javascript", ct)
+	if strings.Contains(got, "1.5.0") {
+		t.Errorf("body still carries the file's own version:\n%s", got)
 	}
-	if cc := rr.Header().Get("Cache-Control"); cc != "no-cache" {
-		t.Errorf("Cache-Control = %q, want no-cache", cc)
-	}
-	body := rr.Body.String()
-	if !strings.Contains(body, "// @version      "+wantVersion) {
-		t.Errorf("body has no stamped version %q:\n%s", wantVersion, body)
-	}
-	if strings.Contains(body, "1.5.0") {
-		t.Errorf("body still carries the file's own version:\n%s", body)
-	}
-	// Everything outside the @version line is served verbatim.
-	if !strings.Contains(body, `(function () { "use strict"; })();`) {
-		t.Errorf("body was altered beyond the version line:\n%s", body)
-	}
-	if !strings.Contains(body, "// @name         Manga Bookmark Sync") {
-		t.Errorf("metadata block was altered:\n%s", body)
+	// Everything outside the @version line is served verbatim, including the
+	// placeholder — stamping must not do the substitution's job.
+	if !strings.Contains(got, `const API_TOKEN = "__API_TOKEN__";`) {
+		t.Errorf("body was altered beyond the version line:\n%s", got)
 	}
 }
 
-// The empty-token case ("/u//manga-bookmark.user.js") is covered at the
-// router level (see backend's guardEmptyUserscriptToken): ServeMux 307s it to
-// "/u/manga-bookmark.user.js" before this handler's own token check ever runs.
-func TestUserscriptWrongTokenIs404(t *testing.T) {
-	path, _ := writeScript(t, sampleScript)
-	srv := newTestMux(testToken, path)
-	for _, tok := range []string{"wrong", testToken + "x", testToken[:3]} {
-		if got := getScript(t, srv, tok).Code; got != http.StatusNotFound {
-			t.Errorf("token %q: status = %d, want 404", tok, got)
-		}
-	}
-}
-
-func TestUserscriptMissingFileIs404(t *testing.T) {
-	srv := newTestMux(testToken, filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "absent.user.js"))
-	if got := getScript(t, srv, testToken).Code; got != http.StatusNotFound {
-		t.Fatalf("status = %d, want 404", got)
-	}
-}
-
-func TestUserscriptWithoutVersionLineServedUnmodified(t *testing.T) {
+func TestStampVersionWithoutVersionLineServedUnmodified(t *testing.T) {
 	const noVersion = "// ==UserScript==\n// @name x\n// ==/UserScript==\nconsole.log(1);\n"
-	path, _ := writeScript(t, noVersion)
-	rr := getScript(t, newTestMux(testToken, path), testToken)
-
-	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
-		t.Fatalf("status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
-	}
-	if rr.Body.String() != noVersion {
-		t.Fatalf("body = %q, want it unmodified", rr.Body.String())
+	if got := string(stampVersion([]byte(noVersion), time.Now())); got != noVersion {
+		t.Errorf("stampVersion altered a file with no @version line:\n%s", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestSubstituteTokenReplacesEveryPlaceholder(t *testing.T) {
+	got := string(substituteToken([]byte(sampleScript), "abc123"))
+
+	if strings.Contains(got, "__API_TOKEN__") {
+		t.Errorf("placeholder survived substitution:\n%s", got)
+	}
+	// The credential lands in the constant and in both metadata lines.
+	if want := `const API_TOKEN = "abc123";`; !strings.Contains(got, want) {
+		t.Errorf("no substituted constant %q:\n%s", want, got)
+	}
+	if want := "https://api.example/u/abc123/manga-bookmark.user.js"; !strings.Contains(got, want) {
+		t.Errorf("no substituted download URL %q:\n%s", want, got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestSubstituteTokenWithoutPlaceholderServedUnmodified(t *testing.T) {
+	const noPlaceholder = "// ==UserScript==\n// @name x\n// ==/UserScript==\n"
+	if got := string(substituteToken([]byte(noPlaceholder), "abc123")); got != noPlaceholder {
+		t.Errorf("substituteToken altered a file without the placeholder:\n%s", got)
 	}
 }
diff --git a/backend/internal/web/static/style.css b/backend/internal/web/static/style.css
index 846e7df..2060619 100644
--- a/backend/internal/web/static/style.css
+++ b/backend/internal/web/static/style.css
@@ -243,6 +243,53 @@ button { cursor: pointer; }
 /* The label is 15px tall by design; the thumb gets 44 without moving it. */
 .ghost::after { content: ""; position: absolute; inset: -15px -12px; }
 
+/* ---- userscript setup: collapsed by default, one hairline, no card ---- */
+.setup {
+  margin: 0 20px;
+  padding: 12px 0 0;
+  border-bottom: 1px solid var(--rule);
+  color: var(--mute);
+}
+.setup summary {
+  display: flex;
+  align-items: center;
+  min-height: 44px;
+  padding: 0;
+  font: 500 10px/1 var(--font-mono);
+  letter-spacing: .2em;
+  text-transform: uppercase;
+  color: var(--mute-2);
+  cursor: pointer;
+  list-style: none;
+}
+.setup summary::-webkit-details-marker { display: none; }
+.setup summary:hover { color: var(--paper); }
+.setup[open] { padding-bottom: 16px; }
+.setup-copy {
+  margin: 0;
+  padding: 4px 0 12px;
+  font: 14px/1.55 var(--font-body);
+  color: var(--mute);
+}
+.setup-links {
+  display: flex;
+  flex-wrap: wrap;
+  gap: 8px 20px;
+  margin: 0 0 14px;
+}
+.setup-links .ghost { font-size: 11px; }
+.setup-rotate { margin: 0; }
+/* Rotation confirmation: the one hot state the panel wears, and it is
+   destruction, not new-chapter signal — danger, never ember. */
+.setup-warn {
+  margin: 0;
+  padding: 10px 12px;
+  border: 1px solid var(--danger);
+  color: var(--danger);
+  font: 500 12px/1.5 var(--font-mono);
+  letter-spacing: .04em;
+}
+
 .chrome { display: flex; flex-direction: column; }
 
 .searchbar {
diff --git a/backend/internal/web/templates/app.html b/backend/internal/web/templates/app.html
index 760c0cd..349cc10 100644
--- a/backend/internal/web/templates/app.html
+++ b/backend/internal/web/templates/app.html
@@ -74,6 +74,8 @@
   </nav>
   </div>
 
+  {{template "setup" .}}
+
   {{template "keyrow" .}}
 
   {{template "recent" .}}
diff --git a/backend/internal/web/templates/setup.html b/backend/internal/web/templates/setup.html
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d770c6e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/internal/web/templates/setup.html
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+{{/* The userscript install panel. Each link serves the script rendered
+     with the acting Reader's credential inside it, so the credential never
+     appears in this page's markup, the address bar, or a redirect. Rotation
+     is confirm-gated because it invalidates every installed copy at once;
+     the response swaps this same panel open with the reinstall warning. */}}
+{{define "setup"}}
+<details class="setup" id="setup"{{if .Rotated}} open{{end}}>
+  <summary>Userscripts</summary>
+  <p class="setup-copy">Install each script once per device. They keep your
+    bookmarks in sync across every site and update themselves from here.</p>
+  <p class="setup-links">
+    <a class="ghost" href="/install/manga-bookmark.user.js">Install Manga script</a>
+    <a class="ghost" href="/install/novel-bookmark.user.js">Install Novels script</a>
+  </p>
+  {{if .Rotated}}
+  <p class="setup-warn" role="status">Credential rotated — the old one no
+    longer works. Reinstall both scripts on every device now, or they will
+    silently stop syncing.</p>
+  {{else}}
+  <form class="setup-rotate" hx-post="/rotate-token" hx-target="#setup"
+        hx-swap="outerHTML"
+        hx-confirm="Rotation invalidates the current credential on every device immediately. You will have to reinstall both scripts everywhere. Rotate?">
+    <button type="submit" class="ghost">Rotate credential</button>
+  </form>
+  {{end}}
+</details>
+{{end}}
diff --git a/backend/internal/web/web.go b/backend/internal/web/web.go
index eb477a9..629750d 100644
--- a/backend/internal/web/web.go
+++ b/backend/internal/web/web.go
@@ -16,6 +16,8 @@ import (
 
 	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/session"
 	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/store"
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/token"
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/userscript"
 )
 
 //go:embed templates
@@ -36,10 +38,19 @@ type Handler struct {
 	// while registration is closed (issue #23). Every session row points at
 	// it, so it is also the Reader the UI acts as.
 	readerID int64
-	tmpl     *template.Template
-	discord  DiscordConfig
-	states   *oauthStates
-	limiter  *session.LoginLimiter
+	// tokenKey derives Readers' userscript credentials (internal/token): the
+	// install endpoints render the scripts with the credential inside, which
+	// is the one place the UI needs the secret.
+	tokenKey []byte
+	// mangaUserscriptPath / novelUserscriptPath are the bindmounted script
+	// files the install endpoints render — the same files the /u/ download
+	// paths serve.
+	mangaUserscriptPath string
+	novelUserscriptPath string
+	tmpl                *template.Template
+	discord             DiscordConfig
+	states              *oauthStates
+	limiter             *session.LoginLimiter
 	// httpClient is the plain stdlib client that talks to Discord. It is not
 	// an injected interface: tests point APIBase at a stub server instead.
 	httpClient *http.Client
@@ -62,6 +73,9 @@ type listView struct {
 	// OOB marks a render of the chrome partials as an out-of-band swap rather
 	// than the inline copy app.html lays out.
 	OOB bool
+	// Rotated marks the setup panel as having just rotated the credential:
+	// it swaps the reinstall warning in over the button row.
+	Rotated bool
 }
 
 // PageURL and ListURL are the two link shapes every tab needs. Building them
@@ -88,19 +102,22 @@ type loginView struct {
 
 // New parses every template up front so a broken one kills the process at
 // startup rather than the first request that touches it.
-func New(s *store.Store, readerID int64, discord DiscordConfig) (*Handler, error) {
+func New(s *store.Store, readerID int64, discord DiscordConfig, tokenKey []byte, mangaPath, novelPath string) (*Handler, error) {
 	tmpl, err := template.ParseFS(templateFS, "templates/*.html")
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, err
 	}
 	return &Handler{
-		store:      s,
-		readerID:   readerID,
-		tmpl:       tmpl,
-		discord:    discord,
-		states:     newOAuthStates(),
-		limiter:    session.NewLoginLimiter(),
-		httpClient: &http.Client{Timeout: discordTimeout},
+		store:               s,
+		readerID:            readerID,
+		tokenKey:            tokenKey,
+		mangaUserscriptPath: mangaPath,
+		novelUserscriptPath: novelPath,
+		tmpl:                tmpl,
+		discord:             discord,
+		states:              newOAuthStates(),
+		limiter:             session.NewLoginLimiter(),
+		httpClient:          &http.Client{Timeout: discordTimeout},
 	}, nil
 }
 
@@ -116,6 +133,14 @@ func (h *Handler) Register(mux *http.ServeMux) {
 	mux.HandleFunc("POST /ui/bookmarks/{key}/status", h.requireSession(h.uiStatus))
 	mux.HandleFunc("POST /ui/bookmarks/{key}/chapter", h.requireSession(h.uiChapter))
 	mux.HandleFunc("DELETE /ui/bookmarks/{key}", h.requireSession(h.uiDelete))
+
+	// Install endpoints render the script directly under the session: the
+	// credential travels inside the served bytes, never in the address bar or
+	// the page markup. Updates after install use the credential-bearing /u/
+	// path the script embeds, which needs no session.
+	mux.HandleFunc("GET /install/manga-bookmark.user.js", h.requireSession(h.installUserscript("manga-bookmark.user.js")))
+	mux.HandleFunc("GET /install/novel-bookmark.user.js", h.requireSession(h.installUserscript("novel-bookmark.user.js")))
+	mux.HandleFunc("POST /rotate-token", h.requireSession(h.rotateToken))
 }
 
 // staticHandler serves the embedded assets. An hour, not longer: assets are
@@ -517,3 +542,48 @@ func (h *Handler) uiDelete(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	// the library got smaller.
 	h.refreshChrome(w, r)
 }
+
+// installUserscript renders the bindmounted script with the acting Reader's
+// derived credential substituted in. The credential is derived, not stored,
+// so installs work after any restart; the Reader never types or copies it —
+// clicking Install is the whole setup.
+func (h *Handler) installUserscript(name string) http.HandlerFunc {
+	path := h.mangaUserscriptPath
+	if name == "novel-bookmark.user.js" {
+		path = h.novelUserscriptPath
+	}
+	return func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		discordID, epoch, err := h.store.ReaderTokenInfo(readerOf(r))
+		if err != nil {
+			log.Printf("install %s: %v", name, err)
+			http.Error(w, "internal error", http.StatusInternalServerError)
+			return
+		}
+		userscript.Render(w, r, path, token.Token(h.tokenKey, discordID, epoch))
+	}
+}
+
+// rotateToken issues the acting Reader a new credential: the epoch bumps and
+// the stored hash is rewritten, so the old credential stops authenticating
+// the moment the statement commits. Every device must reinstall, or its
+// script keeps failing silently — the setup panel states that warning next
+// to the button, and the response repeats it as confirmation.
+func (h *Handler) rotateToken(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	readerID := readerOf(r)
+	discordID, epoch, err := h.store.ReaderTokenInfo(readerID)
+	if err != nil {
+		log.Printf("rotate token: %v", err)
+		http.Error(w, "internal error", http.StatusInternalServerError)
+		return
+	}
+	// The hash is computed for epoch+1 and guarded by it in the store, so a
+	// concurrent rotation cannot leave the stored hash describing another
+	// epoch.
+	if err := h.store.RotateToken(readerID, epoch, token.Hash(token.Token(h.tokenKey, discordID, epoch+1))); err != nil {
+		log.Printf("rotate token: %v", err)
+		http.Error(w, "internal error", http.StatusInternalServerError)
+		return
+	}
+	view := listView{Lib: store.KindManga, Rotated: true}
+	h.render(w, http.StatusOK, "setup", view)
+}
diff --git a/backend/main.go b/backend/main.go
index 0d65dbf..1fb7e1d 100644
--- a/backend/main.go
+++ b/backend/main.go
@@ -2,7 +2,6 @@ package main
 
 import (
 	"context"
-	"crypto/sha256"
 	"errors"
 	"log"
 	"net/http"
@@ -17,13 +16,25 @@ import (
 	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/httpmw"
 	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/latest"
 	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/store"
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/token"
 	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/userscript"
 	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/web"
 )
 
 // Config holds all runtime settings, sourced from environment variables.
 type Config struct {
-	Token          string
+	// Token is the retired global API token, kept only for the cutover grace
+	// window: while GraceUntil has not passed, it resolves to the owner
+	// Reader so already-installed scripts keep working. Unset after the
+	// window closes.
+	Token string
+	// TokenKey derives every Reader's userscript credential (internal/token).
+	// Required: without it no install URL can ever be built.
+	TokenKey string
+	// GraceUntil is the moment the retired global token stops resolving to
+	// the owner Reader. Zero means the token is already dead. Enforced in
+	// code on every request, not by a runbook note.
+	GraceUntil     time.Time
 	AllowedOrigins []string
 	// DatabaseURL is the Postgres connection URL; required, no default,
 	// because a wrong guess would silently start on an empty database.
@@ -147,9 +158,29 @@ func loadLatestPoll() LatestPoll {
 	return p
 }
 
+// parseGraceUntil reads the retired-token deadline. Both a bare date and a
+// full RFC3339 timestamp are accepted; an unparseable value is a
+// configuration bug, not a gracefully-degraded feature — the whole point is
+// that the window's end is enforced, so fail loud.
+func parseGraceUntil(raw string) time.Time {
+	raw = strings.TrimSpace(raw)
+	if raw == "" {
+		return time.Time{}
+	}
+	for _, layout := range []string{time.RFC3339, "2006-01-02"} {
+		if t, err := time.Parse(layout, raw); err == nil {
+			return t
+		}
+	}
+	log.Fatalf("config: API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL=%q is not a date (YYYY-MM-DD) or RFC3339 timestamp", raw)
+	return time.Time{}
+}
+
 func loadConfig() Config {
 	c := Config{
 		Token:               os.Getenv("API_TOKEN"),
+		TokenKey:            os.Getenv("TOKEN_KEY"),
+		GraceUntil:          parseGraceUntil(os.Getenv("API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL")),
 		DatabaseURL:         os.Getenv("DATABASE_URL"),
 		Port:                envOr("PORT", "8080"),
 		OwnerDiscordID:      os.Getenv("OWNER_DISCORD_ID"),
@@ -183,23 +214,28 @@ func newRouter(s *store.Store, cfg Config) http.Handler {
 
 	// Outside httpmw.Auth (the updater sends no Authorization header) and
 	// outside the web UI's Discord auth (the script must be installable
-	// without a browser session). The path segment carries the token instead.
-	mux.HandleFunc("GET /u/{token}/manga-bookmark.user.js", userscript.Handler(cfg.Token, cfg.UserscriptPath))
-	mux.HandleFunc("GET /u/{token}/novel-bookmark.user.js", userscript.Handler(cfg.Token, cfg.NovelUserscriptPath))
+	// without a browser session). The path segment carries the credential
+	// instead, and the script is rendered with the resolved Reader's
+	// credential substituted in.
+	mux.HandleFunc("GET /u/{token}/manga-bookmark.user.js",
+		userscript.Handler(s, []byte(cfg.TokenKey), cfg.Token, cfg.GraceUntil, cfg.UserscriptPath))
+	mux.HandleFunc("GET /u/{token}/novel-bookmark.user.js",
+		userscript.Handler(s, []byte(cfg.TokenKey), cfg.Token, cfg.GraceUntil, cfg.NovelUserscriptPath))
 
-	h := &api.Handler{Store: s, ReaderID: s.OwnerID()}
+	h := &api.Handler{Store: s}
 	protected := http.NewServeMux()
 	protected.HandleFunc("GET /bookmarks", h.List)
 	protected.HandleFunc("PUT /bookmarks/{key}", h.Put)
 	protected.HandleFunc("DELETE /bookmarks/{key}", h.Delete)
 
-	auth := httpmw.Auth(cfg.Token, protected)
+	auth := httpmw.Auth(s, cfg.Token, cfg.GraceUntil, protected)
 	mux.Handle("/bookmarks", auth)
 	mux.Handle("/bookmarks/", auth)
 
 	// The browser UI is always registered; signing in is Discord OAuth, so
 	// there is no password to forget and no gate to leave unset.
-	wh, err := web.New(s, s.OwnerID(), cfg.Discord)
+	wh, err := web.New(s, s.OwnerID(), cfg.Discord, []byte(cfg.TokenKey),
+		cfg.UserscriptPath, cfg.NovelUserscriptPath)
 	if err != nil {
 		log.Fatalf("web handler: %v", err)
 	}
@@ -225,8 +261,8 @@ func guardEmptyUserscriptToken(next http.Handler) http.Handler {
 
 func main() {
 	cfg := loadConfig()
-	if cfg.Token == "" {
-		log.Fatal("API_TOKEN is required")
+	if cfg.TokenKey == "" {
+		log.Fatal("TOKEN_KEY is required")
 	}
 	if cfg.OwnerDiscordID == "" {
 		log.Fatal("OWNER_DISCORD_ID is required")
@@ -246,10 +282,20 @@ func main() {
 			log.Fatalf("%s is required", key)
 		}
 	}
+	if cfg.Token == "" && !cfg.GraceUntil.IsZero() {
+		log.Fatal("API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL is set but API_TOKEN is not")
+	}
+	if cfg.Token != "" && cfg.GraceUntil.IsZero() {
+		log.Printf("API_TOKEN is set without API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL: the retired token is dead on arrival")
+	}
 
-	// The owner's userscript token is the global API token today (issue #22);
-	// the readers row carries its SHA-256, not the token itself.
-	owner := store.Owner{DiscordID: cfg.OwnerDiscordID, TokenHash: sha256.Sum256([]byte(cfg.Token))}
+	// The owner's userscript credential is derived from TOKEN_KEY at epoch 0
+	// (internal/token); the readers row carries its SHA-256, not the
+	// credential itself.
+	owner := store.Owner{
+		DiscordID: cfg.OwnerDiscordID,
+		TokenHash: token.Hash(token.Token([]byte(cfg.TokenKey), cfg.OwnerDiscordID, 0)),
+	}
 
 	s, err := store.Open(cfg.DatabaseURL, owner)
 	if err != nil {
diff --git a/backend/reader_credential_test.go b/backend/reader_credential_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..798140a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/reader_credential_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,339 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"database/sql"
+	"encoding/json"
+	"io"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/store"
+	"bookmarkmanager/backend/internal/token"
+
+	_ "github.com/jackc/pgx/v5/stdlib"
+)
+
+// insertReader creates an extra reader row (registration is closed, so the
+// store has no path for this — tests reach past it) and returns its id. The
+// credential is derived the same way the owner's is, so it authenticates
+// through the real router.
+func insertReader(t *testing.T, dbURL, discordID string) int64 {
+	t.Helper()
+	db, err := sql.Open("pgx", dbURL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("open db: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer db.Close()
+	hash := token.Hash(token.Token([]byte(testTokenKey), discordID, 0))
+	var id int64
+	if err := db.QueryRow(
+		`INSERT INTO readers (discord_id, token_sha256) VALUES ($1, $2) RETURNING id`,
+		discordID, hash[:]).Scan(&id); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("insert reader: %v", err)
+	}
+	return id
+}
+
+// credRequest builds a request authenticated as the Reader whose credential
+// is passed.
+func credRequest(method, target, cred string) *http.Request {
+	req := httptest.NewRequest(method, target, nil)
+	req.Header.Set("Authorization", "Bearer "+cred)
+	return req
+}
+
+// readerCredential is the epoch-0 derived credential of an arbitrary Reader.
+func readerCredential(discordID string) string {
+	return token.Token([]byte(testTokenKey), discordID, 0)
+}
+
+// withBody attaches a request body, for PUTs that carry a JSON payload.
+func withBody(req *http.Request, body string) *http.Request {
+	req.Body = io.NopCloser(strings.NewReader(body))
+	req.ContentLength = int64(len(body))
+	return req
+}
+
+// The retired global token resolves to the owner Reader only while the grace
+// deadline is in the future — testConfig sets it, so the acceptance path is
+// the existing auth() tests; this pins the other side of the window.
+func TestLegacyTokenDeadAfterGrace(t *testing.T) {
+	s := newTestStore(t)
+	cfg := testConfig()
+	cfg.GraceUntil = time.Now().Add(-time.Hour)
+	srv := newRouter(s, cfg)
+
+	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, credRequest(http.MethodGet, "/bookmarks", testToken))
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusUnauthorized {
+		t.Fatalf("legacy token after grace: status = %d, want 401", rr.Code)
+	}
+
+	// The owner's own derived credential is unaffected by the window closing.
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, credRequest(http.MethodGet, "/bookmarks", ownerCredential()))
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("derived token after grace: status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
+	}
+}
+
+// A Reader's credential authenticates exactly that Reader: rows written under
+// one credential are invisible to the other, on the same key.
+func TestPerReaderIsolation(t *testing.T) {
+	s, dbURL := newTestStoreURL(t)
+	insertReader(t, dbURL, "other-reader")
+	srv := newRouter(s, testConfig())
+
+	ownerKey := "asura:solo"
+	putBookmark(t, srv, ownerKey, store.Bookmark{
+		Key: ownerKey, Site: "asura", SeriesID: "solo",
+		Title: "Solo Leveling", UpdatedAt: 1,
+	})
+
+	// The other Reader's list is empty even though the owner holds the key.
+	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, credRequest(http.MethodGet, "/bookmarks", readerCredential("other-reader")))
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("other reader list: status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
+	}
+	var theirs []store.Bookmark
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(rr.Body.Bytes(), &theirs); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("decode: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(theirs) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("other reader sees %d bookmarks, want 0 (owner's rows leaked)", len(theirs))
+	}
+
+	// The other Reader writes the same key; both rows coexist, each visible
+	// only to its owner. The series title is shared (ADR-0003) — the
+	// reader-owned fields are progress and updated_at.
+	req := credRequest(http.MethodPut, "/bookmarks/"+ownerKey, readerCredential("other-reader"))
+	req.Header.Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
+	body := `{"key":"asura:solo","site":"asura","series_id":"solo","title":"Theirs","last_chapter_num":3}`
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, withBody(req, body))
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("other reader put: status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
+	}
+
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, credRequest(http.MethodGet, "/bookmarks", readerCredential("other-reader")))
+	var theirs2 []store.Bookmark
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(rr.Body.Bytes(), &theirs2); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("decode: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(theirs2) != 1 || theirs2[0].LastChapterNum != 3 {
+		t.Fatalf("other reader list = %+v, want their own row with their progress", theirs2)
+	}
+
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, credRequest(http.MethodGet, "/bookmarks", ownerCredential()))
+	var owners []store.Bookmark
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(rr.Body.Bytes(), &owners); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("decode: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(owners) != 1 || owners[0].Title != "Solo Leveling" {
+		t.Fatalf("owner list = %+v, want their own row", owners)
+	}
+
+	// One Reader's credential cannot delete the other's row.
+	req = credRequest(http.MethodDelete, "/bookmarks/"+ownerKey, readerCredential("other-reader"))
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, req)
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusNoContent {
+		t.Fatalf("other reader delete: status = %d, want 204", rr.Code)
+	}
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, credRequest(http.MethodGet, "/bookmarks", ownerCredential()))
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(rr.Body.Bytes(), &owners); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("decode: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(owners) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("owner's row was deletable by another Reader: list = %+v", owners)
+	}
+}
+
+// The install endpoints are session-gated and render the script directly
+// with the Reader's credential inside: the credential never appears in the
+// address bar, the page markup, or any Location header.
+func TestInstallServesScriptWithCredential(t *testing.T) {
+	cfg := webConfig()
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	path := filepath.Join(dir, "manga-bookmark.user.js")
+	novelPath := filepath.Join(dir, "novel-bookmark.user.js")
+	for _, p := range []string{path, novelPath} {
+		if err := os.WriteFile(p, []byte("const API_TOKEN = \"__API_TOKEN__\";\n"), 0o644); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("write script: %v", err)
+		}
+	}
+	cfg.UserscriptPath = path
+	cfg.NovelUserscriptPath = novelPath
+	srv, st := newWebTestServer(t, cfg)
+
+	for _, script := range []string{"manga-bookmark.user.js", "novel-bookmark.user.js"} {
+		rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
+		srv.ServeHTTP(rr, httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/install/"+script, nil))
+		if rr.Code != http.StatusUnauthorized {
+			t.Fatalf("%s without session: status = %d, want 401", script, rr.Code)
+		}
+
+		req := httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/install/"+script, nil)
+		req.AddCookie(sessionCookie(t, st))
+		rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+		srv.ServeHTTP(rr, req)
+		if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
+			t.Fatalf("%s with session: status = %d, want 200", script, rr.Code)
+		}
+		body := rr.Body.String()
+		if strings.Contains(body, "__API_TOKEN__") {
+			t.Fatalf("%s served with an unsubstituted placeholder", script)
+		}
+		// The credential rides inside the served script — nowhere visible in
+		// the UI — and is the session holder's own.
+		if !strings.Contains(body, `API_TOKEN = "`+ownerCredential()+`"`) {
+			t.Fatalf("%s does not carry the owner's credential:\n%s", script, body)
+		}
+		if loc := rr.Header().Get("Location"); loc != "" {
+			t.Fatalf("%s answered with a redirect, credential in Location %q", script, loc)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// The retired global token also keeps the script download path working during
+// the grace window — that is how already-installed scripts auto-update across
+// the cutover — and dies with it. The copy served on the legacy path embeds
+// the Reader's derived credential, so the next update poll migrates the
+// device onto its per-Reader path: the window empties itself.
+func TestLegacyTokenUserscriptPathDuringGrace(t *testing.T) {
+	path := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "manga-bookmark.user.js")
+	if err := os.WriteFile(path, []byte("const API_TOKEN = \"__API_TOKEN__\";\n"), 0o644); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("write script: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	s := newTestStore(t)
+	cfg := testConfig()
+	cfg.UserscriptPath = path
+
+	// Within the window the legacy URL serves the script, but with the
+	// owner's derived credential substituted — not the legacy one.
+	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
+	newRouter(s, cfg).ServeHTTP(rr, httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet,
+		"/u/"+testToken+"/manga-bookmark.user.js", nil))
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("legacy path during grace: status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
+	}
+	if got := rr.Body.String(); !strings.Contains(got, `API_TOKEN = "`+ownerCredential()+`"`) {
+		t.Fatalf("legacy-path script does not carry the derived credential:\n%s", got)
+	}
+
+	// After the deadline the same URL is a 404 like any unknown credential.
+	cfg.GraceUntil = time.Now().Add(-time.Hour)
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	newRouter(s, cfg).ServeHTTP(rr, httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet,
+		"/u/"+testToken+"/manga-bookmark.user.js", nil))
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusNotFound {
+		t.Fatalf("legacy path after grace: status = %d, want 404", rr.Code)
+	}
+}
+
+// Rotation through the web UI invalidates the old credential immediately,
+// mints one that authenticates the API and the script path, and warns that
+// every device must reinstall.
+func TestRotateCredentialViaWebUI(t *testing.T) {
+	s, _ := newTestStoreURL(t)
+	path := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "manga-bookmark.user.js")
+	if err := os.WriteFile(path, []byte("const API_TOKEN = \"__API_TOKEN__\";\n"), 0o644); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("write script: %v", err)
+	}
+	cfg := webConfig()
+	cfg.UserscriptPath = path
+	srv := newRouter(s, cfg)
+
+	oldCred := ownerCredential()
+	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, credRequest(http.MethodGet, "/bookmarks", oldCred))
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("old credential before rotation: status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
+	}
+
+	req := httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodPost, "/rotate-token", nil)
+	req.AddCookie(sessionCookie(t, s))
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, req)
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("rotate: status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(rr.Body.String(), "Credential rotated") {
+		t.Fatalf("rotation response does not warn about reinstall:\n%s", rr.Body.String())
+	}
+
+	// The old credential is dead on the API and on the script path.
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, credRequest(http.MethodGet, "/bookmarks", oldCred))
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusUnauthorized {
+		t.Fatalf("old credential after rotation: status = %d, want 401", rr.Code)
+	}
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/u/"+oldCred+"/manga-bookmark.user.js", nil))
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusNotFound {
+		t.Fatalf("old credential script path after rotation: status = %d, want 404", rr.Code)
+	}
+
+	// The new credential authenticates the API and the script path, and is
+	// substituted into the served script.
+	newCred := token.Token([]byte(testTokenKey), testDiscordID, 1)
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, credRequest(http.MethodGet, "/bookmarks", newCred))
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("new credential after rotation: status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
+	}
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/u/"+newCred+"/manga-bookmark.user.js", nil))
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("new credential script path: status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
+	}
+	if got := rr.Body.String(); !strings.Contains(got, `API_TOKEN = "`+newCred+`"`) {
+		t.Fatalf("served script does not carry the rotated credential:\n%s", got)
+	}
+
+	// The install link now renders the script with the new credential.
+	req = httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/install/manga-bookmark.user.js", nil)
+	req.AddCookie(sessionCookie(t, s))
+	rr = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, req)
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("install after rotation: status = %d, want 200", rr.Code)
+	}
+	if got := rr.Body.String(); !strings.Contains(got, `API_TOKEN = "`+newCred+`"`) {
+		t.Fatalf("install after rotation does not carry the new credential:\n%s", got)
+	}
+}
+
+// The app page offers the install links; the credential never appears in its
+// markup.
+func TestIndexShowsSetupPanelWithoutCredential(t *testing.T) {
+	srv, st := newWebTestServer(t, webConfig())
+	req := httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/", nil)
+	req.AddCookie(sessionCookie(t, st))
+	rr := httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.ServeHTTP(rr, req)
+
+	body := rr.Body.String()
+	for _, want := range []string{
+		`href="/install/manga-bookmark.user.js"`,
+		`href="/install/novel-bookmark.user.js"`,
+		"Rotate credential",
+	} {
+		if !strings.Contains(body, want) {
+			t.Errorf("app page lacks %q", want)
+		}
+	}
+	if strings.Contains(body, ownerCredential()) {
+		t.Fatal("app page leaks the credential")
+	}
+}
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index 2449766..e30d4b3 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -13,8 +13,13 @@ services:
     container_name: bookmark-api
     restart: unless-stopped
     environment:
-      # API_TOKEN is required — compose refuses to start without it.
-      API_TOKEN: ${API_TOKEN:?set API_TOKEN in .env}
+      # TOKEN_KEY derives every Reader's userscript credential (issue #24) —
+      # compose refuses to start without it.
+      TOKEN_KEY: ${TOKEN_KEY:?set TOKEN_KEY in .env}
+      # Retired global credential, optional: only used until the grace
+      # deadline, for already-installed scripts. Remove after the window.
+      API_TOKEN: ${API_TOKEN:-}
+      API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL: ${API_TOKEN_GRACE_UNTIL:-}
       # Owner's Discord user ID — required, seeds the one Reader row.
       OWNER_DISCORD_ID: ${OWNER_DISCORD_ID:?set OWNER_DISCORD_ID in .env}
       ALLOWED_ORIGINS: ${ALLOWED_ORIGINS:-https://asuracomic.net,https://asurascans.com,https://demonicscans.org,https://comix.to,https://kagane.to,https://novelfull.com,https://lightnovelworld.net}
diff --git a/userscript/manga-bookmark.user.js b/userscript/manga-bookmark.user.js
index bec8d4a..f2689a4 100644
--- a/userscript/manga-bookmark.user.js
+++ b/userscript/manga-bookmark.user.js
@@ -4,8 +4,8 @@
 // @version      1.6.0
 // @description  Track read progress on Asura, Demonic, Comix & Kagane and sync to a self-hosted backend. Bromite-compatible (no GM_* APIs).
 // @author       you
-// @downloadURL  https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id/u/40d79969b5442f90df4fe306a092c7c50e7b4a7a98099f98cc398f4fb374b1df/manga-bookmark.user.js
-// @updateURL    https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id/u/40d79969b5442f90df4fe306a092c7c50e7b4a7a98099f98cc398f4fb374b1df/manga-bookmark.user.js
+// @downloadURL  https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id/u/__API_TOKEN__/manga-bookmark.user.js
+// @updateURL    https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id/u/__API_TOKEN__/manga-bookmark.user.js
 // @match        https://asuracomic.net/*
 // @match        https://asurascans.com/*
 // @match        https://demonicscans.org/*
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
   // CONFIG — fill these in before installing.
   // ============================================================
   const API_BASE = "https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id"; // your backend origin, no trailing slash
-  const API_TOKEN = "40d79969b5442f90df4fe306a092c7c50e7b4a7a98099f98cc398f4fb374b1df"; // must equal backend API_TOKEN
+  const API_TOKEN = "__API_TOKEN__"; // substituted by the backend at serve time (issue #24)
   const WEB_BASE = "https://bookmark.violetcrown.my.id"; // the browser UI, for the panel's nav chips
 
   // This script owns the manga library; the novel script is a separate install
diff --git a/userscript/novel-bookmark.user.js b/userscript/novel-bookmark.user.js
index df82b71..93efcdd 100644
--- a/userscript/novel-bookmark.user.js
+++ b/userscript/novel-bookmark.user.js
@@ -4,8 +4,8 @@
 // @version      1.0.0
 // @description  Track read progress on NovelFull & LightNovelWorld and sync to a self-hosted backend. Bromite-compatible (no GM_* APIs).
 // @author       you
-// @downloadURL  https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id/u/40d79969b5442f90df4fe306a092c7c50e7b4a7a98099f98cc398f4fb374b1df/novel-bookmark.user.js
-// @updateURL    https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id/u/40d79969b5442f90df4fe306a092c7c50e7b4a7a98099f98cc398f4fb374b1df/novel-bookmark.user.js
+// @downloadURL  https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id/u/__API_TOKEN__/novel-bookmark.user.js
+// @updateURL    https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id/u/__API_TOKEN__/novel-bookmark.user.js
 // @match        https://novelfull.com/*
 // @match        https://lightnovelworld.net/*
 // @run-at       document-idle
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@
   // CONFIG — fill these in before installing.
   // ============================================================
   const API_BASE = "https://bookmark-api.violetcrown.my.id"; // your backend origin, no trailing slash
-  const API_TOKEN = "40d79969b5442f90df4fe306a092c7c50e7b4a7a98099f98cc398f4fb374b1df"; // must equal backend API_TOKEN
+  const API_TOKEN = "__API_TOKEN__"; // substituted by the backend at serve time (issue #24)
   const WEB_BASE = "https://bookmark.violetcrown.my.id"; // the browser UI, for the panel's nav chips
 
   // This script owns the novel library; the manga script is a separate install