diff --git a/mfer/constants.go b/mfer/constants.go
index f38c74a..4640637 100644
--- a/mfer/constants.go
+++ b/mfer/constants.go
@@ -3,4 +3,9 @@ package mfer
 const (
 	Version     = "0.1.0"
 	ReleaseDate = "2025-12-17"
+
+	// MaxDecompressedSize is the maximum allowed size of decompressed manifest
+	// data (256 MB). This prevents decompression bombs from consuming excessive
+	// memory.
+	MaxDecompressedSize int64 = 256 * 1024 * 1024
 )
diff --git a/mfer/deserialize.go b/mfer/deserialize.go
index 76a8655..878bf8f 100644
--- a/mfer/deserialize.go
+++ b/mfer/deserialize.go
@@ -76,10 +76,20 @@ func (m *manifest) deserializeInner() error {
 	}
 	defer zr.Close()
 
-	dat, err := io.ReadAll(zr)
+	// Limit decompressed size to prevent decompression bombs.
+	// Use declared size + 1 byte to detect overflow, capped at MaxDecompressedSize.
+	maxSize := MaxDecompressedSize
+	if m.pbOuter.Size > 0 && m.pbOuter.Size < int64(maxSize) {
+		maxSize = int64(m.pbOuter.Size) + 1
+	}
+	limitedReader := io.LimitReader(zr, maxSize)
+	dat, err := io.ReadAll(limitedReader)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
+	if int64(len(dat)) >= MaxDecompressedSize {
+		return fmt.Errorf("decompressed data exceeds maximum allowed size of %d bytes", MaxDecompressedSize)
+	}
 
 	isize := len(dat)
 	if int64(isize) != m.pbOuter.Size {