diff --git a/internal/config/config_validation_internal_test.go b/internal/config/config_validation_internal_test.go
index abfdee7..2e06fc9 100644
--- a/internal/config/config_validation_internal_test.go
+++ b/internal/config/config_validation_internal_test.go
@@ -135,6 +135,55 @@ func TestDefaultDBURLOpensTheDatabaseInWALMode(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// TestDerivedDBURLOpensStateDirHoldingURLCharacters opens the db_url
+// derived from a state_dir whose name holds %41, ? and #, and checks that
+// the database is state.sqlite3 in that directory, in WAL mode. Put into
+// a file: URL as it is, the name would lose its meaning: %41 is read as
+// A, and the path ends at the ?, which also loses the journal mode.
+func TestDerivedDBURLOpensStateDirHoldingURLCharacters(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	stateDir := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "a%41b?c#d")
+
+	err := os.Mkdir(stateDir, 0o750)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("failed to create %q: %v", stateDir, err)
+	}
+
+	// Quoted so YAML takes the whole name as it is.
+	c, err := configFromYAML(t, signingKeyLine+"state_dir: '"+stateDir+"'\n")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("config with state_dir %q should be valid, got: %v", stateDir, err)
+	}
+
+	t.Logf("state_dir %q gives db_url %q", stateDir, c.DBURL)
+
+	db, err := sql.Open("sqlite", c.DBURL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("failed to open %q: %v", c.DBURL, err)
+	}
+
+	t.Cleanup(func() { _ = db.Close() })
+
+	var journalMode string
+
+	err = db.QueryRowContext(t.Context(), "PRAGMA journal_mode").Scan(&journalMode)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("failed to read the journal mode of %q: %v", c.DBURL, err)
+	}
+
+	if journalMode != "wal" {
+		t.Errorf("journal mode of %q = %q, want wal", c.DBURL, journalMode)
+	}
+
+	dbFile := filepath.Join(stateDir, "state.sqlite3")
+
+	_, err = os.Stat(dbFile)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Errorf("opening %q did not create %q: %v", c.DBURL, dbFile, err)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestExplicitValidValuesAreUsed(t *testing.T) {
 	t.Parallel()