diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yaml b/.github/workflows/ci.yaml
index e5b7acc..03887b4 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yaml
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ jobs:
         uses: opentofu/setup-opentofu@a1320f892987e89d278cc92dc5adc984fb93aca4 # v2.0.2
         with:
           tofu_version: 1.12.6
+          tofu_wrapper: false # The YAML parser test passes an expression through console stdin.
 
       - name: Validate repository
         run: scripts/test.sh
diff --git a/.github/workflows/cloudflare-connection.yaml b/.github/workflows/cloudflare-connection.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..def6ff5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/cloudflare-connection.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+name: Cloudflare connection (read-only)
+
+"on":
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      confirmation:
+        description: Type VERIFY_READ_ONLY to check the existing CI connection
+        required: true
+        type: string
+
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+
+jobs:
+  check:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 3
+    steps:
+      - name: Require main and typed confirmation
+        env:
+          CONFIRMATION: ${{ inputs.confirmation }}
+        run: |
+          if [ "$GITHUB_EVENT_NAME" != workflow_dispatch ] || [ "$GITHUB_REF" != refs/heads/main ] || [ "$CONFIRMATION" != VERIFY_READ_ONLY ]; then
+            echo 'Read-only connection check refused: use main and the exact confirmation.' >&2
+            exit 2
+          fi
+
+      - name: Check out the confirmed revision
+        uses: actions/checkout@3d3c42e5aac5ba805825da76410c181273ba90b1 # v7.0.1
+        with:
+          ref: ${{ github.sha }}
+          persist-credentials: false
+
+      - name: Verify existing Cloudflare connection
+        env:
+          CONFIRMATION: ${{ inputs.confirmation }}
+          CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN }}
+        run: bash scripts/check-cloudflare-connection.sh
diff --git a/docs/runbooks/bootstrap-and-recovery.md b/docs/runbooks/bootstrap-and-recovery.md
index 27c7b95..af0f932 100644
--- a/docs/runbooks/bootstrap-and-recovery.md
+++ b/docs/runbooks/bootstrap-and-recovery.md
@@ -6,6 +6,18 @@ writes credentials or state into this repository.
 
 ## Prerequisites
 
+The manual **Cloudflare connection (read-only)** workflow can check the existing
+`CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN` CI binding before another credential handoff is requested.
+Run it from `main` with confirmation `VERIFY_READ_ONLY`. Its guard runs before
+checkout and credential use; it makes only fixed GET requests for the owned zone
+and active account token, and prints capability verdicts without account data.
+Missing or unverifiable access fails the check. Verified read access does not
+establish state custody, import coverage or write permissions.
+The workflow never imports, plans, applies or changes provider resources.
+
+This follows GitHub's [manual workflow controls](https://docs.github.com/en/actions/how-tos/manage-workflow-runs/manually-run-a-workflow)
+and [environment-variable input handling](https://docs.github.com/en/actions/reference/security/secure-use#use-an-intermediate-environment-variable).
+
 - OpenTofu 1.12.x and `jq`.
 - A short-lived Cloudflare bootstrap token with only the permissions needed to
   read and import the inventoried resources.
diff --git a/scripts/check-cloudflare-connection.sh b/scripts/check-cloudflare-connection.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..dea3959
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/check-cloudflare-connection.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# Read-only connection check. Provider responses and credentials never reach logs.
+set +x
+set -euo pipefail
+
+stop() {
+  printf 'CF_CONNECTION=%s\nDEPLOYMENT_READINESS=UNVERIFIED\n' "$1" >&2
+  exit 2
+}
+
+[[ ${GITHUB_EVENT_NAME:-} == workflow_dispatch && ${GITHUB_REF:-} == refs/heads/main && ${CONFIRMATION:-} == VERIFY_READ_ONLY ]] || stop DISPATCH_REFUSED
+if ! command -v jq >/dev/null 2>&1 || ! command -v curl >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+  stop TOOLS_UNAVAILABLE
+fi
+[[ -n ${CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN:-} ]] || stop MISSING_CREDENTIAL
+[[ ${#CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN} -ge 20 && ${#CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN} -le 512 && $CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN =~ ^[A-Za-z0-9._~+/-]+=*$ ]] || stop INVALID_CREDENTIAL_FORMAT
+
+read_cloudflare() {
+  # The credential goes through stdin, never a process argument. Disabling
+  # curlrc, proxies and redirects keeps the fixed provider destination intact.
+  printf 'header = "Authorization: Bearer %s"\n' "$CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN" |
+    curl --disable --config - --request GET --proto '=https' --noproxy '*' \
+      --max-redirs 0 --connect-timeout 10 --max-time 20 --max-filesize 1048576 \
+      --silent --show-error --fail-with-body --url "$1" 2>/dev/null
+}
+
+zone_response=$(read_cloudflare 'https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/zones?name=devantler.tech&per_page=50') || stop ZONE_READ_UNVERIFIED
+account_id=$(printf '%s' "$zone_response" | jq -er '
+  if .success == true and (.result|type) == "array" and (.result|length) == 1
+    and .result_info.total_count == 1 and .result_info.total_pages == 1
+    and .result[0].name == "devantler.tech" and .result[0].status == "active"
+    and (.result[0].account.id|type) == "string"
+    and (.result[0].account.id|test("^[a-f0-9]{32}$"))
+  then .result[0].account.id else error("owned zone binding unavailable") end
+' 2>/dev/null) || stop ZONE_BINDING_UNVERIFIED
+unset zone_response
+
+token_response=$(read_cloudflare "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/$account_id/tokens/verify") || stop TOKEN_READ_UNVERIFIED
+printf '%s' "$token_response" | jq -e '
+  .success == true and .result.status == "active"
+  and (.result.id|type) == "string" and (.result.id|length) > 0 and (.result.id|length) <= 32
+' >/dev/null 2>&1 || stop TOKEN_STATUS_UNVERIFIED
+unset token_response account_id
+printf '%s\n' 'CF_CONNECTION=READ_ACCESS_VERIFIED' 'DEPLOYMENT_READINESS=UNVERIFIED'
diff --git a/scripts/test.sh b/scripts/test.sh
index 947ad25..255cae1 100755
--- a/scripts/test.sh
+++ b/scripts/test.sh
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ cd "$repo_root"
 
 shellcheck scripts/*.sh scripts/tests/*.sh
 scripts/tests/test-no-destructive-plan.sh
+bash scripts/tests/test-cloudflare-connection.sh
 tofu fmt -check -recursive
 tofu init -backend=false -input=false
 tofu validate
diff --git a/scripts/tests/test-cloudflare-connection.sh b/scripts/tests/test-cloudflare-connection.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..0f8bbeb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/tests/test-cloudflare-connection.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,163 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -euo pipefail
+
+repo_root=$(CDPATH='' cd -- "$(dirname -- "$0")/../.." && pwd)
+work_dir=$(mktemp -d)
+trap 'rm -rf "$work_dir"' EXIT
+mkdir -p "$work_dir/bin" "$work_dir/parse"
+probe="$repo_root/scripts/check-cloudflare-connection.sh"
+fixture_token=AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
+
+cat > "$work_dir/bin/curl" <<'STUB'
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -euo pipefail
+printf 'attempt\n' >> "$CF_FIXTURE_ATTEMPTS_FILE"
+[[ $1 == --disable ]] || exit 90
+url=''
+while [[ $# -gt 0 ]]; do
+  case $1 in
+    --disable|--silent|--show-error|--fail-with-body) shift ;;
+    --config) [[ $2 == - ]] || exit 91; shift 2 ;;
+    --request) [[ $2 == GET ]] || exit 92; shift 2 ;;
+    --proto) [[ $2 == '=https' ]] || exit 93; shift 2 ;;
+    --noproxy) [[ $2 == '*' ]] || exit 94; shift 2 ;;
+    --max-redirs) [[ $2 == 0 ]] || exit 95; shift 2 ;;
+    --connect-timeout|--max-time|--max-filesize) shift 2 ;;
+    --url) url=$2; shift 2 ;;
+    *) exit 96 ;;
+  esac
+done
+IFS= read -r header
+[[ $header == 'header = "Authorization: Bearer AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA"' ]] || exit 97
+printf '%s\n' "$url" >> "$CF_FIXTURE_CALLS_FILE"
+if [[ $CF_FIXTURE_CASE == http-error ]]; then
+  printf '{"success":false,"errors":[{"code":10000,"message":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA"}]}'
+  exit 22
+fi
+if [[ $CF_FIXTURE_CASE == invalid-json ]]; then
+  printf 'not JSON'
+  exit 0
+fi
+case $url in
+  'https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/zones?name=devantler.tech&per_page=50')
+    case $CF_FIXTURE_CASE in
+      ambiguous) printf '{"success":true,"result":[{},{}],"result_info":{"total_count":2,"total_pages":1}}' ;;
+      partial-page) printf '{"success":true,"result":[{"name":"devantler.tech","status":"active","account":{"id":"22222222222222222222222222222222"}}],"result_info":{"total_count":2,"total_pages":2}}' ;;
+      wrong-zone) printf '{"success":true,"result":[{"name":"other.test","status":"active","account":{"id":"22222222222222222222222222222222"}}],"result_info":{"total_count":1,"total_pages":1}}' ;;
+      invalid-account) printf '{"success":true,"result":[{"name":"devantler.tech","status":"active","account":{"id":"../other"}}],"result_info":{"total_count":1,"total_pages":1}}' ;;
+      *) printf '{"success":true,"result":[{"name":"devantler.tech","status":"active","account":{"id":"22222222222222222222222222222222"}}],"result_info":{"total_count":1,"total_pages":1}}' ;;
+    esac
+    ;;
+  'https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/22222222222222222222222222222222/tokens/verify')
+    case $CF_FIXTURE_CASE in
+      inactive) printf '{"success":true,"result":{"id":"33333333333333333333333333333333","status":"disabled"}}' ;;
+      short-token-id) printf '{"success":true,"result":{"id":"3333","status":"active"}}' ;;
+      *) printf '{"success":true,"result":{"id":"33333333333333333333333333333333","status":"active"}}' ;;
+    esac
+    ;;
+  *) exit 98 ;;
+esac
+STUB
+chmod +x "$work_dir/bin/curl"
+
+run_probe() {
+  local scenario=$1 expected_rc=$2 expected_calls=$3 token=$fixture_token
+  local ref=refs/heads/main event=workflow_dispatch confirmation=VERIFY_READ_ONLY probe_rc=0
+  local probe_path="$work_dir/bin:$PATH"
+  case $scenario in
+    absent-token) token='' ;;
+    wrong-ref) ref=refs/heads/unreviewed ;;
+    wrong-event) event=pull_request ;;
+    wrong-confirmation) confirmation='VERIFY_READ_ONLY"; exit 0; #' ;;
+    missing-tool) probe_path="$work_dir/bin" ;;
+  esac
+  : > "$work_dir/calls"
+  : > "$work_dir/attempts"
+  if [[ $scenario == inherited-trace ]]; then
+    set -- /bin/bash -x "$probe"
+  else
+    set -- /bin/bash "$probe"
+  fi
+  env PATH="$probe_path" CF_FIXTURE_CASE="$scenario" CF_FIXTURE_CALLS_FILE="$work_dir/calls" CF_FIXTURE_ATTEMPTS_FILE="$work_dir/attempts" \
+    CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN="$token" GITHUB_REF="$ref" GITHUB_EVENT_NAME="$event" \
+    CONFIRMATION="$confirmation" "$@" > "$work_dir/$scenario.out" 2>&1 || probe_rc=$?
+  [[ $probe_rc == "$expected_rc" ]] || { echo "FAIL $scenario: expected exit $expected_rc, got $probe_rc" >&2; exit 1; }
+  [[ $(wc -l < "$work_dir/calls" | tr -d ' ') == "$expected_calls" ]] || { echo "FAIL $scenario: unexpected provider request count" >&2; exit 1; }
+  [[ $(wc -l < "$work_dir/attempts" | tr -d ' ') == "$expected_calls" ]] || { echo "FAIL $scenario: an unsafe request was attempted" >&2; exit 1; }
+  if grep -Eq 'AAAAAAAAAAAA|222222222222|333333333333|Authorization:' "$work_dir/$scenario.out"; then
+    echo "FAIL $scenario: private request material reached output" >&2
+    exit 1
+  fi
+}
+
+run_probe success 0 2
+run_probe inherited-trace 0 2
+run_probe short-token-id 0 2
+grep -Fq 'CF_CONNECTION=READ_ACCESS_VERIFIED' "$work_dir/success.out"
+grep -Fq 'DEPLOYMENT_READINESS=UNVERIFIED' "$work_dir/success.out"
+run_probe absent-token 2 0
+run_probe wrong-ref 2 0
+run_probe wrong-event 2 0
+run_probe wrong-confirmation 2 0
+run_probe missing-tool 2 0
+run_probe http-error 2 1
+run_probe invalid-json 2 1
+run_probe ambiguous 2 1
+run_probe partial-page 2 1
+run_probe wrong-zone 2 1
+run_probe invalid-account 2 1
+run_probe inactive 2 2
+
+# Reuse the project's required OpenTofu runtime as a real YAML parser; this
+# empty, disposable module has no provider, backend or production credential.
+workflow="$repo_root/.github/workflows/cloudflare-connection.yaml"
+expression=$(jq -nr --arg path "$workflow" '"jsonencode(yamldecode(file(" + ($path|tojson) + ")))"')
+printf '%s\n' "$expression" | tofu -chdir="$work_dir/parse" console -no-color > "$work_dir/workflow-string.json"
+jq -r . "$work_dir/workflow-string.json" > "$work_dir/workflow.json"
+
+check_workflow() {
+  jq -e '
+    .permissions == {contents:"read"}
+    and (.on|keys) == ["workflow_dispatch"]
+    and .on.workflow_dispatch.inputs.confirmation.type == "string"
+    and .on.workflow_dispatch.inputs.confirmation.required == true
+    and (.jobs|keys) == ["check"]
+    and .jobs.check["runs-on"] == "ubuntu-latest"
+    and .jobs.check["timeout-minutes"] == 3
+    and (.jobs.check.permissions // {}) == {}
+    and (.jobs.check|has("continue-on-error")|not)
+    and (.jobs.check|has("if")|not)
+    and all(.jobs.check.steps[]; (has("continue-on-error")|not) and (has("if")|not))
+    and (.env // {}) == {} and (.jobs.check.env // {}) == {}
+    and (.defaults // {}) == {} and (.jobs.check.defaults // {}) == {}
+    and (.jobs.check.steps|length) == 3
+    and .jobs.check.steps[0].env == {CONFIRMATION:"${{ inputs.confirmation }}"}
+    and (.jobs.check.steps[0].run|contains("${{")|not)
+    and .jobs.check.steps[1].uses == "actions/checkout@3d3c42e5aac5ba805825da76410c181273ba90b1"
+    and .jobs.check.steps[1].with == {"persist-credentials":false,ref:"${{ github.sha }}"}
+    and (.jobs.check.steps[1].env // {}) == {}
+    and .jobs.check.steps[2].env == {CONFIRMATION:"${{ inputs.confirmation }}",CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN:"${{ secrets.CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN }}"}
+    and .jobs.check.steps[2].run == "bash scripts/check-cloudflare-connection.sh"
+  ' "$1" >/dev/null
+}
+check_workflow "$work_dir/workflow.json"
+jq -r '.jobs.check.steps[0].run' "$work_dir/workflow.json" > "$work_dir/guard.sh"
+env GITHUB_REF=refs/heads/main GITHUB_EVENT_NAME=workflow_dispatch CONFIRMATION=VERIFY_READ_ONLY bash "$work_dir/guard.sh"
+for scenario in wrong-ref wrong-event wrong-confirmation; do
+  ref=refs/heads/main; event=workflow_dispatch; confirmation=VERIFY_READ_ONLY
+  case $scenario in
+    wrong-ref) ref=refs/heads/unreviewed ;;
+    wrong-event) event=pull_request ;;
+    wrong-confirmation) confirmation='VERIFY_READ_ONLY"; exit 0; #' ;;
+  esac
+  if env GITHUB_REF="$ref" GITHUB_EVENT_NAME="$event" CONFIRMATION="$confirmation" bash "$work_dir/guard.sh" > /dev/null 2>&1; then
+    echo "FAIL inline guard accepted $scenario" >&2; exit 1
+  fi
+done
+for mutation in '.permissions.contents="write"' '.on.push={}' '.jobs.check.steps|=.[1:]' '.jobs.check.steps[0].env.CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN="exposed-before-guard"' '.jobs.check.steps[1].with.token="provider-key"'; do
+  jq "$mutation" "$work_dir/workflow.json" > "$work_dir/mutant.json"
+  if check_workflow "$work_dir/mutant.json"; then
+    echo 'FAIL unsafe workflow control accepted' >&2; exit 1
+  fi
+done
+printf '%s\n' 'PASS: read-only Cloudflare connection and workflow failure controls'