diff --git a/.github/scripts/node_security_check.sh b/.github/scripts/node_security_check.sh
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..438678783
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/scripts/node_security_check.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,226 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# Tracks Node.js security releases against the Node pins in Dockerfile.unified
+# and the Node inside the published ghcr.io/openabdev/openab images. Keeps one
+# open issue labeled node-security while anything is behind and closes it once
+# everything is current. Exits non-zero only when the check itself breaks, so
+# stale data never turns the workflow red. See #1567.
+#
+# Env: DOCKERFILE (default Dockerfile.unified), DRY_RUN=1 prints the decision
+# and issue body without calling gh, GH_TOKEN for gh.
+set -euo pipefail
+shopt -s inherit_errexit
+
+DOCKERFILE=${DOCKERFILE:-Dockerfile.unified}
+LABEL='node-security'
+REPO=openabdev/openab
+CHANNELS=(stable beta)
+MANIFEST_ACCEPT=application/vnd.oci.image.index.v1+json,application/vnd.docker.distribution.manifest.list.v2+json,application/vnd.oci.image.manifest.v1+json,application/vnd.docker.distribution.manifest.v2+json
+
+MAJORS=()
+IMAGE_ROWS=()
+declare -A PINNED=() AGENTS=() LATEST=() PIN_STATUS=() STALE_MAJOR=()
+
+die() { echo "::error::$*" >&2; exit 1; }
+
+version_lt() { [[ $1 != "$2" && $(printf '%s\n%s\n' "$1" "$2" | sort -V | head -n1) == "$1" ]]; }
+
+status_of() {
+  if [[ -z $1 ]]; then echo "not published"
+  elif [[ -n ${LATEST[$2]} ]] && version_lt "$1" "${LATEST[$2]}"; then echo stale
+  else echo current
+  fi
+}
+
+parse_dockerfile() {
+  [[ -r $DOCKERFILE ]] || die "cannot read $DOCKERFILE"
+  local line stage m
+  local -a stages=() unpinned=()
+  local -A stage_major=()
+  while IFS= read -r line; do
+    if [[ $line =~ ^ARG\ NODE([0-9]+)_VERSION=([0-9]+\.[0-9]+\.[0-9]+)$ ]]; then
+      PINNED[${BASH_REMATCH[1]}]=${BASH_REMATCH[2]}
+    elif [[ $line =~ ^FROM\ node:\$\{NODE([0-9]+)_VERSION\}[^\ ]*\ AS\ ([a-z0-9_-]+) ]]; then
+      stage_major[${BASH_REMATCH[2]}]=${BASH_REMATCH[1]}
+      stages+=("${BASH_REMATCH[2]}")
+    elif [[ $line =~ ^FROM\ node: ]]; then
+      unpinned+=("$line")
+    elif [[ $line =~ ^FROM\ ([a-z0-9_-]+)\ AS\ ([a-z0-9_-]+) && -n ${stage_major[${BASH_REMATCH[1]}]:-} ]]; then
+      stage_major[${BASH_REMATCH[2]}]=${stage_major[${BASH_REMATCH[1]}]}
+      stages+=("${BASH_REMATCH[2]}")
+    fi
+  done <"$DOCKERFILE"
+
+  ((${#PINNED[@]})) || die "no 'ARG NODE<major>_VERSION=<x.y.z>' found in $DOCKERFILE"
+  ((${#unpinned[@]} == 0)) || die "Node stage not pinned through NODE<major>_VERSION in $DOCKERFILE: ${unpinned[*]}"
+  for stage in "${stages[@]}"; do
+    m=${stage_major[$stage]}
+    [[ -n ${PINNED[$m]:-} ]] || die "stage $stage uses NODE${m}_VERSION but $DOCKERFILE declares no ARG for it"
+    # base-* stages are shared parents, not published image targets.
+    [[ $stage == base-* ]] || AGENTS[$m]+="$stage "
+  done
+  mapfile -t MAJORS < <(printf '%s\n' "${!PINNED[@]}" | sort -n)
+}
+
+load_latest_security() {
+  local index m
+  index=$(curl -fsSL --retry 3 https://nodejs.org/dist/index.json) || die "cannot fetch https://nodejs.org/dist/index.json"
+  for m in "${MAJORS[@]}"; do
+    LATEST[$m]=$(jq -r --arg p "v$m." '.[] | select(.security and (.version | startswith($p))) | .version | ltrimstr("v")' <<<"$index" | sort -V | tail -n1)
+  done
+}
+
+# Prints the response body, or nothing when the registry answers 404.
+registry_get() {
+  local code
+  code=$(curl -sSL --retry 3 -o "$TMP/registry" -w '%{http_code}' \
+    -H "Authorization: Bearer $REGISTRY_TOKEN" -H "Accept: $2" \
+    "https://ghcr.io/v2/$REPO/$1") || die "GET ghcr.io/v2/$REPO/$1 failed"
+  case $code in
+    200) cat "$TMP/registry" ;;
+    404) ;;
+    *) die "GET ghcr.io/v2/$REPO/$1 returned HTTP $code" ;;
+  esac
+}
+
+# Prints NODE_VERSION from the linux/amd64 image config, or nothing when the tag is not published.
+image_node_version() {
+  local manifest digest config_digest config
+  manifest=$(registry_get "manifests/$1" "$MANIFEST_ACCEPT")
+  [[ -n $manifest ]] || return 0
+  digest=$(jq -r '.manifests[]? | select(.platform.os == "linux" and .platform.architecture == "amd64") | .digest' <<<"$manifest" | head -n1)
+  if [[ -n $digest ]]; then
+    manifest=$(registry_get "manifests/$digest" "$MANIFEST_ACCEPT")
+  fi
+  config_digest=$(jq -er '.config.digest' <<<"$manifest") || die "$1: no linux/amd64 config in manifest"
+  config=$(registry_get "blobs/$config_digest" '*/*')
+  jq -er '.config.Env[] | select(startswith("NODE_VERSION=")) | ltrimstr("NODE_VERSION=")' <<<"$config" ||
+    die "$1: NODE_VERSION not set in image config"
+}
+
+assess() {
+  local m agent channel node status
+  REGISTRY_TOKEN=$(curl -fsS --retry 3 "https://ghcr.io/token?scope=repository:$REPO:pull" | jq -er .token) ||
+    die "cannot get an anonymous ghcr.io pull token"
+  for m in "${MAJORS[@]}"; do
+    PIN_STATUS[$m]=$(status_of "${PINNED[$m]}" "$m")
+    if [[ ${PIN_STATUS[$m]} == stale ]]; then STALE_MAJOR[$m]=1; fi
+    for agent in ${AGENTS[$m]:-}; do
+      for channel in "${CHANNELS[@]}"; do
+        node=$(image_node_version "$channel-$agent")
+        status=$(status_of "$node" "$m")
+        IMAGE_ROWS+=("| \`$channel-$agent\` | ${node:--} | $status |")
+        if [[ $status == stale ]]; then STALE_MAJOR[$m]=1; fi
+      done
+    done
+  done
+}
+
+release_link() {
+  if [[ -n $1 ]]; then echo "[$1](https://nodejs.org/en/blog/release/v$1)"; else echo none; fi
+}
+
+render_tables() {
+  local m agents
+  echo "### Pinned base images (\`$DOCKERFILE\`)"
+  echo
+  echo "| Node line | Pinned | Latest security release | Status | Agents |"
+  echo "|---|---|---|---|---|"
+  for m in "${MAJORS[@]}"; do
+    agents=${AGENTS[$m]:-}
+    agents=${agents% }
+    echo "| $m | ${PINNED[$m]} | $(release_link "${LATEST[$m]}") | ${PIN_STATUS[$m]} | ${agents// /, } |"
+  done
+  echo
+  echo "### Published images (\`ghcr.io/$REPO\`, linux/amd64)"
+  echo
+  echo "| Tag | Node | Status |"
+  echo "|---|---|---|"
+  printf '%s\n' "${IMAGE_ROWS[@]}"
+}
+
+render_issue_body() {
+  cat <<EOF
+Node.js has published a security release that a pinned base image or a published openab image is behind on. The \`node-security-check\` workflow keeps this issue up to date daily and closes it once every pin and published image is current.
+
+$(render_tables)
+
+### Next steps
+
+1. For each stale pin, bump \`ARG NODE<major>_VERSION\` to the latest security release in every Dockerfile that declares it (\`git grep -lE 'ARG NODE[0-9]+_VERSION' -- 'Dockerfile*'\`). The smoke tests check that the values match.
+2. Follow the "Base image security release" runbook in [RELEASING.md](https://github.com/$REPO/blob/main/RELEASING.md#base-image-security-release) to cut a beta, verify \`node --version\` in each \`beta-<agent>\` image, and promote to stable.
+3. Background and policy: #1567.
+
+Last checked: $(date -u '+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M UTC')
+EOF
+}
+
+issue_title() {
+  local m versions=()
+  for m in "${MAJORS[@]}"; do
+    if [[ -n ${STALE_MAJOR[$m]:-} ]]; then versions+=("${LATEST[$m]}"); fi
+  done
+  local joined
+  joined=$(printf '%s / ' "${versions[@]}")
+  echo "Node.js security release pending: ${joined% / }"
+}
+
+# (anything stale, labeled issue open) -> action.
+decide() {
+  case "$1$2" in
+    10) echo create ;;
+    11) echo update ;;
+    01) echo close ;;
+    00) echo none ;;
+  esac
+}
+
+ensure_label() {
+  local exists
+  exists=$(gh label list --search "$LABEL" --json name --jq "any(.[]; .name == \"$LABEL\")")
+  [[ $exists == true ]] || gh label create "$LABEL" --color B60205 --description "Node.js security release pending for openab images"
+}
+
+# Args: stale (0|1), title, body file.
+reconcile() {
+  local issue action has_issue=0
+  issue=$(gh issue list --label "$LABEL" --state open --limit 1 --json number --jq '.[0].number // empty')
+  if [[ -n $issue ]]; then has_issue=1; fi
+  action=$(decide "$1" "$has_issue")
+  echo "decision: $action${issue:+ (#$issue)}"
+  case $action in
+    create)
+      ensure_label
+      gh issue create --title "$2" --label "$LABEL" --body-file "$3"
+      ;;
+    update) gh issue edit "$issue" --title "$2" --body-file "$3" ;;
+    close) gh issue close "$issue" --comment "Every Node pin and published image is on the latest Node.js security release for its line. Closing.
+
+$(render_tables)" ;;
+    none) ;;
+  esac
+}
+
+main() {
+  TMP=$(mktemp -d)
+  trap 'rm -rf "$TMP"' EXIT
+  parse_dockerfile
+  load_latest_security
+  assess
+
+  local stale=0 title
+  if ((${#STALE_MAJOR[@]})); then stale=1; fi
+  title=$(issue_title)
+  render_issue_body >"$TMP/body.md"
+  if [[ -n ${GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY:-} ]]; then render_tables >>"$GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY"; fi
+
+  if [[ ${DRY_RUN:-} == 1 ]]; then
+    if ((stale)); then echo "decision: create or update issue"; else echo "decision: close the open issue if any, else none"; fi
+    echo "title: $title"
+    echo
+    cat "$TMP/body.md"
+  else
+    reconcile "$stale" "$title" "$TMP/body.md"
+  fi
+}
+
+if [[ ${BASH_SOURCE[0]} == "$0" ]]; then main "$@"; fi
diff --git a/.github/workflows/close-unlinked-stale-issues.yml b/.github/workflows/close-unlinked-stale-issues.yml
index 3988610b5..f34bb4ea0 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/close-unlinked-stale-issues.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/close-unlinked-stale-issues.yml
@@ -312,7 +312,8 @@ jobs:
             }
 
             // ── Phase 2: process new candidates ──
-            const query = `${repoQ} is:issue state:open -linked:pr -label:${HANDLED_LABEL} -label:${PENDING_LABEL} -label:${CLOSING_LABEL} created:<${cutoff}`;
+            // node-security issues are owned by node-security-check.yml, which closes them itself.
+            const query = `${repoQ} is:issue state:open -linked:pr -label:${HANDLED_LABEL} -label:${PENDING_LABEL} -label:${CLOSING_LABEL} -label:node-security created:<${cutoff}`;
             core.info(`query: ${query}${DRY_RUN ? ' (dry run)' : ''}`);
             const result = await searchIssues(query, { sort: 'created', order: 'asc' });
             for (const issue of result.items) {
diff --git a/.github/workflows/node-security-check.yml b/.github/workflows/node-security-check.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..488fdb463
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/node-security-check.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,48 @@
+name: Node security check
+
+on:
+  schedule:
+    - cron: '47 7 * * *'  # daily at 07:47 UTC
+  workflow_dispatch:
+  # Dry-run regression gate: a change that breaks the Dockerfile parser or the
+  # script fails in its own PR instead of in the next scheduled run.
+  pull_request:
+    paths:
+      - .github/scripts/node_security_check.sh
+      - .github/workflows/node-security-check.yml
+      - Dockerfile.unified
+
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+
+# A scheduled run and a manual dispatch racing could each create an issue.
+# PR dry runs never touch issues, so they get their own per-PR group.
+concurrency:
+  group: node-security-check-${{ github.event_name == 'pull_request' && format('pr-{0}', github.event.pull_request.number) || 'reconcile' }}
+  cancel-in-progress: ${{ github.event_name == 'pull_request' }}
+
+jobs:
+  dry-run:
+    if: github.event_name == 'pull_request'
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 10
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v6
+      - name: Dry-run the Node security check (no gh calls)
+        env:
+          DRY_RUN: '1'
+        run: bash .github/scripts/node_security_check.sh
+
+  check:
+    if: github.event_name != 'pull_request' && github.repository == 'openabdev/openab'
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 10
+    permissions:
+      contents: read
+      issues: write
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v6
+      - name: Compare Node pins and published images with Node.js security releases
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+        run: bash .github/scripts/node_security_check.sh