diff --git a/builder/requirements.txt b/builder/requirements.txt
index a0cef110..cff5f884 100644
--- a/builder/requirements.txt
+++ b/builder/requirements.txt
@@ -3,6 +3,11 @@
 runpod~=1.12.0
 aiohttp>=3.9
 huggingface-hub>=0.24
+# Security floor (GHSA-6q48-6c7w-9gw2): the vllm/vllm-openai base image ships
+# certifi, and pip leaves it alone unless a requirement forces the upgrade.
+# <2026.10.19 trusts emSign ECC Root CA - G3, under which eight intermediates
+# have compromised keys.
+certifi>=2026.10.19
 # bitsandbytes moved out of vLLM core into an out-of-tree plugin in v0.28.0
 # (vllm-project/vllm#43529); without it LOAD_FORMAT/QUANTIZATION=bitsandbytes
 # configs die at model load. This is its runtime library — the plugin itself