diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index abbcef8..929fda9 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -6,6 +6,15 @@ to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).
 
 ## [Unreleased]
 
+### Fixed
+
+- security: drop two inert `curl`-pipe deny rules from the settings template.
+  Claude Code only honors `:*` as a trailing wildcard, so the trailing pipe made
+  the colon a literal and the rules matched nothing. Real pipe-to-shell
+  enforcement already lives in `protect-paths.sh`, now tightened to also catch a
+  no-space pipe and a `zsh` target. Adds a regression test for template rule
+  shape.
+
 ## [0.12.3] - 2026-07-11
 
 ### Fixed
diff --git a/global/guards/protect-paths.sh b/global/guards/protect-paths.sh
index bd116a9..b7366ff 100755
--- a/global/guards/protect-paths.sh
+++ b/global/guards/protect-paths.sh
@@ -38,8 +38,11 @@ if [ -n "${cmd:-}" ]; then
     *"rm -rf /"*|*"rm -rf ~"*|*"rm -rf --no-preserve-root"*) deny "destructive rm detected." ;;
     *"git push --force"*|*"git push -f"*) deny "force-push blocked. Ask the user first." ;;
     *"DROP TABLE"*|*"DROP DATABASE"*|*"TRUNCATE "*) deny "destructive SQL detected. Confirm with the user." ;;
-    *" | sh"*|*" | bash"*) deny "piping remote content to a shell is blocked." ;;
   esac
+  # Pipe-to-shell (e.g. curl … | sh). Boundary-aware so legit `… | shellcheck` is not caught.
+  if [[ "$cmd" =~ \|[[:space:]]*(sh|bash|zsh)([[:space:]]|$) ]]; then
+    deny "piping content to a shell is blocked."
+  fi
 fi
 
 exit 0
diff --git a/global/settings.template.json b/global/settings.template.json
index 6feb964..5b2f542 100644
--- a/global/settings.template.json
+++ b/global/settings.template.json
@@ -70,8 +70,6 @@
       "Bash(rm -rf ~:*)",
       "Bash(git push --force:*)",
       "Bash(git push -f:*)",
-      "Bash(curl:* | sh)",
-      "Bash(curl:* | bash)",
       "Bash(sudo:*)"
     ]
   },
diff --git a/test/settings_template.test.js b/test/settings_template.test.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6a6f3d9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/settings_template.test.js
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+import assert from "node:assert/strict";
+import { readFileSync } from "node:fs";
+import { test } from "node:test";
+
+const templateUrl = new URL("../global/settings.template.json", import.meta.url);
+const template = JSON.parse(readFileSync(templateUrl, "utf8"));
+
+/** Specifier inside a `Bash(<spec>)` rule, or null when the rule isn't a Bash rule. */
+function bashSpec(rule) {
+  const match = /^Bash\((.*)\)$/.exec(rule);
+  return match ? match[1] : null;
+}
+
+const rules = [
+  ...(template.permissions?.allow ?? []),
+  ...(template.permissions?.ask ?? []),
+  ...(template.permissions?.deny ?? []),
+];
+
+test("settings template parses and has a permissions block", () => {
+  assert.ok(template.permissions, "permissions block present");
+});
+
+test("no Bash rule embeds a shell compound operator in its specifier", () => {
+  // Claude Code splits compound commands on `|`, `&&`, `;` and matches each
+  // subcommand independently, so an operator inside a single specifier can never
+  // match a real command. This is the exact shape of the old inert
+  // `Bash(curl:* | sh)` rules — keep it out for good.
+  for (const rule of rules) {
+    const spec = bashSpec(rule);
+    if (spec === null) continue;
+    assert.doesNotMatch(spec, /\||&&|;/, `malformed Bash rule (compound operator): ${rule}`);
+  }
+});
+
+test("`:*` appears only at the end of a Bash specifier", () => {
+  // `:*` is a trailing-wildcard shorthand ONLY at the end of a pattern; anywhere
+  // else the colon is a literal character and the rule matches nothing.
+  for (const rule of rules) {
+    const spec = bashSpec(rule);
+    if (spec === null || !spec.includes(":*")) continue;
+    assert.ok(spec.endsWith(":*"), `\`:*\` not at end of specifier: ${rule}`);
+  }
+});
+
+test("the former inert curl-pipe deny rules are absent", () => {
+  const deny = template.permissions?.deny ?? [];
+  assert.ok(!deny.includes("Bash(curl:* | sh)"), "inert curl|sh rule must stay removed");
+  assert.ok(!deny.includes("Bash(curl:* | bash)"), "inert curl|bash rule must stay removed");
+});