diff --git a/internal/handler/debian.go b/internal/handler/debian.go
index e413ca3..1fc7c36 100644
--- a/internal/handler/debian.go
+++ b/internal/handler/debian.go
@@ -40,6 +40,11 @@ func (h *DebianHandler) Routes() http.Handler {
 
 		path := strings.TrimPrefix(r.URL.Path, "/")
 
+		if containsPathTraversal(path) {
+			http.Error(w, "invalid path", http.StatusBadRequest)
+			return
+		}
+
 		// Route based on path type
 		switch {
 		case strings.HasPrefix(path, "pool/"):
diff --git a/internal/handler/debian_test.go b/internal/handler/debian_test.go
index bebffcf..77d6843 100644
--- a/internal/handler/debian_test.go
+++ b/internal/handler/debian_test.go
@@ -86,4 +86,13 @@ func TestDebianHandler_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 	if w.Code != http.StatusMethodNotAllowed {
 		t.Errorf("POST request: got status %d, want %d", w.Code, http.StatusMethodNotAllowed)
 	}
+
+	// Test path traversal rejection
+	req = httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/pool/../../../etc/passwd", nil)
+	w = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	handler.ServeHTTP(w, req)
+
+	if w.Code != http.StatusBadRequest {
+		t.Errorf("path traversal: got status %d, want %d", w.Code, http.StatusBadRequest)
+	}
 }
diff --git a/internal/handler/handler.go b/internal/handler/handler.go
index 9e906b9..9cf6e2d 100644
--- a/internal/handler/handler.go
+++ b/internal/handler/handler.go
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ import (
 	"io"
 	"log/slog"
 	"net/http"
+	"strings"
 	"time"
 
 	"github.com/git-pkgs/proxy/internal/cooldown"
@@ -18,6 +19,17 @@ import (
 	"github.com/git-pkgs/registries/fetch"
 )
 
+// containsPathTraversal returns true if the path contains ".." segments
+// that could be used to escape the intended directory.
+func containsPathTraversal(path string) bool {
+	for _, segment := range strings.Split(path, "/") {
+		if segment == ".." {
+			return true
+		}
+	}
+	return false
+}
+
 // Proxy provides shared functionality for protocol handlers.
 type Proxy struct {
 	DB       *database.DB
diff --git a/internal/handler/path_traversal_test.go b/internal/handler/path_traversal_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..14d2218
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/handler/path_traversal_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+package handler
+
+import "testing"
+
+func TestContainsPathTraversal(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		path string
+		want bool
+	}{
+		{"pool/main/n/nginx/nginx_1.0.deb", false},
+		{"releases/39/Packages/test.rpm", false},
+		{"../etc/passwd", true},
+		{"pool/../../etc/passwd", true},
+		{"pool/main/../../../etc/shadow", true},
+		{"pool/..hidden/file", false}, // ".." as a segment, not "..hidden"
+		{"", false},
+	}
+
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.path, func(t *testing.T) {
+			got := containsPathTraversal(tt.path)
+			if got != tt.want {
+				t.Errorf("containsPathTraversal(%q) = %v, want %v", tt.path, got, tt.want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
diff --git a/internal/handler/rpm.go b/internal/handler/rpm.go
index cff5b00..12ce9dc 100644
--- a/internal/handler/rpm.go
+++ b/internal/handler/rpm.go
@@ -41,6 +41,11 @@ func (h *RPMHandler) Routes() http.Handler {
 
 		path := strings.TrimPrefix(r.URL.Path, "/")
 
+		if containsPathTraversal(path) {
+			http.Error(w, "invalid path", http.StatusBadRequest)
+			return
+		}
+
 		// Route based on path type
 		switch {
 		case strings.HasSuffix(path, ".rpm"):
diff --git a/internal/handler/rpm_test.go b/internal/handler/rpm_test.go
index b24d8fa..b63f44d 100644
--- a/internal/handler/rpm_test.go
+++ b/internal/handler/rpm_test.go
@@ -86,4 +86,13 @@ func TestRPMHandler_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 	if w.Code != http.StatusMethodNotAllowed {
 		t.Errorf("POST request: got status %d, want %d", w.Code, http.StatusMethodNotAllowed)
 	}
+
+	// Test path traversal rejection
+	req = httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/releases/../../../etc/passwd", nil)
+	w = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	handler.ServeHTTP(w, req)
+
+	if w.Code != http.StatusBadRequest {
+		t.Errorf("path traversal: got status %d, want %d", w.Code, http.StatusBadRequest)
+	}
 }