diff --git a/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/src/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/DefaultSecretResolver.cs b/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/src/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/DefaultSecretResolver.cs
index 5325258..6875fc7 100644
--- a/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/src/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/DefaultSecretResolver.cs
+++ b/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/src/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/DefaultSecretResolver.cs
@@ -6,9 +6,10 @@ namespace ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets;
 
 /// <summary>
 /// The default <see cref="ISecretResolver"/>: loads an encrypted row from the store, decrypts it
-/// on demand, and serves it from a short-lived in-memory cache. Every resolution — hit, miss, or
-/// tombstone — emits an <see cref="AuditEvent"/> recording <b>which</b> secret was accessed and the
-/// outcome. The plaintext value is <b>never</b> placed in any audit field.
+/// on demand, and serves it from a short-lived in-memory cache. Every resolution — hit, miss,
+/// tombstone, or decryption failure — emits an <see cref="AuditEvent"/> recording <b>which</b>
+/// secret was accessed and the outcome. The plaintext value is <b>never</b> placed in any audit
+/// field.
 /// </summary>
 /// <remarks>
 /// <para>
@@ -23,6 +24,13 @@ namespace ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets;
 /// <c>null</c> and audits a <see cref="AuditOutcome.Failure"/> with a <c>not-found</c> action, so a
 /// consumer can distinguish "absent" from "present" without a throw on the hot path.
 /// </para>
+/// <para>
+/// A <b>decryption or integrity failure</b> (tampered ciphertext or the wrong KEK) is different: it
+/// is <b>fail-loud</b>. <see cref="GetAsync"/> audits a <see cref="AuditOutcome.Failure"/> with a
+/// <c>decryption-failed</c> action and then rethrows the <see cref="SecretDecryptionException"/> — it
+/// is never masked as a benign miss or a <c>null</c>. The audit records only the secret name; the
+/// ciphertext and any value are never included.
+/// </para>
 /// </remarks>
 public sealed class DefaultSecretResolver : ISecretResolver
 {
@@ -30,6 +38,7 @@ public sealed class DefaultSecretResolver : ISecretResolver
     private const string AuditCategory = "Secrets";
     private const string ResolveAction = "secret.resolve";
     private const string NotFoundAction = "secret.resolve.not-found";
+    private const string DecryptionFailedAction = "secret.resolve.decryption-failed";
 
     private readonly ISecretStore _store;
     private readonly ISecretCipher _cipher;
@@ -94,8 +103,20 @@ public sealed class DefaultSecretResolver : ISecretResolver
             return null;
         }
 
-        // Decrypt on demand and cache the plaintext for the short TTL.
-        string plaintext = _cipher.Decrypt(row);
+        // Decrypt on demand and cache the plaintext for the short TTL. A decryption/integrity
+        // failure (tampered ciphertext or wrong KEK) MUST leave an audit trail and then propagate —
+        // it is never masked as a benign miss. The audit records only the name; never the value.
+        string plaintext;
+        try
+        {
+            plaintext = _cipher.Decrypt(row);
+        }
+        catch (SecretDecryptionException)
+        {
+            await AuditDecryptionFailedAsync(name, ct).ConfigureAwait(false);
+            throw;
+        }
+
         _cache[key] = new CacheEntry(plaintext, now + _cacheTtl, row.Revision);
 
         await AuditSuccessAsync(name, source: "store", ct).ConfigureAwait(false);
@@ -116,6 +137,10 @@ public sealed class DefaultSecretResolver : ISecretResolver
     private Task AuditNotFoundAsync(SecretName name, CancellationToken ct) =>
         WriteAuditAsync(name, NotFoundAction, AuditOutcome.Failure, "{\"reason\":\"not-found\"}", ct);
 
+    private Task AuditDecryptionFailedAsync(SecretName name, CancellationToken ct) =>
+        WriteAuditAsync(
+            name, DecryptionFailedAction, AuditOutcome.Failure, "{\"reason\":\"decryption-failed\"}", ct);
+
     private Task WriteAuditAsync(
         SecretName name, string action, AuditOutcome outcome, string detailsJson, CancellationToken ct)
     {
diff --git a/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/tests/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets.Tests/DefaultSecretResolverTests.cs b/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/tests/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets.Tests/DefaultSecretResolverTests.cs
index e7202c5..631b2fe 100644
--- a/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/tests/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets.Tests/DefaultSecretResolverTests.cs
+++ b/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets/tests/ZB.MOM.WW.Secrets.Tests/DefaultSecretResolverTests.cs
@@ -118,6 +118,37 @@ public class DefaultSecretResolverTests
         Assert.Equal(AuditOutcome.Failure, evt.Outcome);
     }
 
+    [Fact]
+    public async Task Get_DecryptionFailure_AuditsFailure_AndRethrows()
+    {
+        // The resolver's cipher and the encrypting cipher share a KekId ("k1") but hold different
+        // random key bytes, so the DEK unwrap fails closed with a SecretDecryptionException.
+        var store = new CountingSecretStore();
+        var audit = new CapturingAuditWriter();
+        var clock = new MutableTimeProvider(DateTimeOffset.UnixEpoch);
+        var resolverCipher = new AesGcmEnvelopeCipher(new FakeMasterKeyProvider("k1"));
+        var resolver = new DefaultSecretResolver(store, resolverCipher, audit, Ttl, actorAccessor: null, clock);
+
+        var foreignCipher = new AesGcmEnvelopeCipher(new FakeMasterKeyProvider("k1")); // same id, different key
+        var name = new SecretName("sql/foo");
+        store.Seed(MakeRow(foreignCipher, name, "hunter2"));
+
+        // Fail-loud: the integrity failure must propagate, not be masked as a benign miss/null.
+        await Assert.ThrowsAsync<SecretDecryptionException>(() => resolver.GetAsync(name, CancellationToken.None));
+
+        AuditEvent evt = Assert.Single(audit.Events);
+        Assert.Equal(AuditOutcome.Failure, evt.Outcome);
+        Assert.Equal("secret.resolve.decryption-failed", evt.Action);
+        Assert.Equal("sql/foo", evt.Target);
+
+        // Hard guarantee: the plaintext must NEVER appear in any serialized audit field.
+        foreach (AuditEvent captured in audit.Events)
+        {
+            string json = JsonSerializer.Serialize(captured);
+            Assert.DoesNotContain("hunter2", json, StringComparison.Ordinal);
+        }
+    }
+
     [Fact]
     public async Task Invalidate_RemovesCacheEntry()
     {