diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index 439026c..93152d0 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -32,6 +32,7 @@ API_HOST=
 
 # ── Database ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:password@localhost:5432/dorisio
+POSTGRES_PASSWORD=replace-with-a-local-development-password
 # Comma-separated read-only PostgreSQL URLs; reads opt in per query.
 DATABASE_READ_REPLICA_URLS=
 DB_REPLICA_ENABLED=false
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index eedb18f..874f0f3 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -280,6 +280,10 @@ DATABASE_URL={{ DATABASE_URL }}
 JWT_SECRET={{ JWT_SECRET }}
 ```
 
+Production Kubernetes synchronizes AWS Secrets Manager versions through
+External Secrets Operator; rotation, IAM scope, CloudTrail auditing, and
+rollout steps are documented in [the secret-management runbook](docs/runbooks/secrets.md).
+
 **Feature flags** toggle features per environment with `FEATURE_*` variables
 and are read in code via `isFeatureEnabled('<name>')` from `src/config`:
 
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index 7539d4f..a0a2b55 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ services:
     container_name: dorisio-postgres
     environment:
       POSTGRES_USER: dorisio
-      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: dorisio_dev_password
+      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${POSTGRES_PASSWORD:?Set POSTGRES_PASSWORD in your untracked .env file}
       POSTGRES_DB: dorisio
     ports:
       - '5432:5432'
@@ -38,11 +38,11 @@ services:
     container_name: dorisio-backend
     environment:
       NODE_ENV: development
-      DATABASE_URL: postgresql://dorisio:dorisio_dev_password@postgres:5432/dorisio
+      DATABASE_URL: postgresql://dorisio:${POSTGRES_PASSWORD:?Set POSTGRES_PASSWORD in your untracked .env file}@postgres:5432/dorisio
       REDIS_URL: redis://redis:6379
       PORT: 3000
       LOG_LEVEL: debug
-      JWT_SECRET: dev-secret-key-change-in-production
+      JWT_SECRET: ${JWT_SECRET:?Set JWT_SECRET in your untracked .env file}
       STELLAR_NETWORK: testnet
       STELLAR_HORIZON_URL: https://horizon-testnet.stellar.org
       STELLAR_SERVER_SECRET_KEY: ${STELLAR_SERVER_SECRET_KEY}
diff --git a/docs/CONFIGURATION.md b/docs/CONFIGURATION.md
index bf20605..15669e6 100644
--- a/docs/CONFIGURATION.md
+++ b/docs/CONFIGURATION.md
@@ -34,8 +34,9 @@ JWT_SECRET={{ JWT_SECRET }}        # resolved from the process environment
 DATABASE_URL={{ DATABASE_URL }}    # or an injected secrets provider
 ```
 
-- Resolution order: process environment → optional `secretsProvider` map
-  (integration point for Vault / AWS Secrets Manager / SOPS).
+- Resolution order: process environment → optional `secretsProvider` map.
+  Production Kubernetes uses External Secrets Operator with AWS Secrets
+  Manager; see the [secret rotation runbook](runbooks/secrets.md).
 - An unresolved reference is a **startup failure**, never a literal
   `{{ ... }}` string reaching the application.
 - Secret values are redacted as `[REDACTED]` in the config audit log and in
diff --git a/docs/runbooks/secrets.md b/docs/runbooks/secrets.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1816bde
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/runbooks/secrets.md
@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+# Secret management and rotation
+
+Production Kubernetes secrets are synchronized from AWS Secrets Manager by
+External Secrets Operator (ESO). The checked-in
+[`ExternalSecret`](../../infra/kubernetes/external-secret.aws.yaml) maps the
+JSON properties in `dorisio/production/backend` to the existing
+`dorisio-backend-secrets` Kubernetes Secret consumed by the Deployment. The
+[`ClusterSecretStore`](../../infra/kubernetes/secret-store.aws.yaml) uses
+AWS web-identity credentials; no AWS access key or secret value belongs in
+this repository.
+
+## One-time platform setup
+
+1. Install ESO and configure its `external-secrets` service account with an
+   IRSA/web-identity role. Restrict `secretsmanager:GetSecretValue` and
+   `secretsmanager:DescribeSecret` to the `dorisio/production/backend-*`
+   secret ARN; grant `kms:Decrypt` only for the customer-managed key used by
+   that secret, if applicable.
+2. Create the JSON secret `dorisio/production/backend` in AWS Secrets Manager
+   with `DATABASE_URL`, `REDIS_URL`, `JWT_SECRET`, and the optional Stellar
+   and Stripe keys used by the deployment.
+3. Enable CloudTrail management/data-event auditing for Secrets Manager,
+   retain the events in the organization’s protected audit account, and alert
+   on denied reads, unexpected principals, and secret-version changes.
+4. Apply the Kubernetes manifests and verify
+   `kubectl -n dorisio get externalsecret dorisio-backend-secrets` reports
+   `Ready=True`. Confirm the generated Secret contains the expected key names
+   without printing or decoding any values.
+
+The sample store currently uses `us-east-1`; set the region and remote secret
+path for each environment before applying. Use a separate secret and IAM role
+per environment. The legacy `secret.example.yaml` is a local/manual template
+only and is deliberately not included in the Kustomize production resources.
+
+## Rotation procedure
+
+1. Create a new AWS Secrets Manager version. For database/Redis credentials,
+   provision the new credential while the old credential remains valid.
+2. Move the staging secret to the new version and verify ESO synchronization,
+   readiness, database/cache connectivity, and error-rate/latency dashboards.
+3. Promote the new version in production. ESO polls hourly; force a sync with
+   `kubectl annotate es dorisio-backend-secrets -n dorisio force-sync=$(date +%s) --overwrite`
+   when the change must be picked up immediately.
+4. Restart the backend rollout after synchronization. The application pins
+   connection credentials and JWT configuration at process startup; a restart
+   is required for those values to take effect.
+5. Verify the rollout and authentication/payment health before revoking the
+   old credential. Keep the previous secret version available for rollback
+   until the observation window closes.
+
+JWT key rotation invalidates tokens signed only by the old key. Coordinate
+the rollout with clients or use the application’s supported token lifetime
+and re-authentication policy. Record the change ticket, secret version IDs
+(never values), approver, rollout revision, and rollback decision. ESO and
+CloudTrail logs must not include secret payloads; application configuration
+audit output redacts keys classified as secrets.
+
+## Incident response
+
+If a secret may have leaked, create a replacement version immediately, verify
+that ESO synced it, roll the workload, revoke the exposed credential, and
+review CloudTrail access events. Follow [incident response](../INCIDENT_RESPONSE.md)
+and do not paste secret values into tickets, logs, or chat.
diff --git a/infra/kubernetes/external-secret.aws.yaml b/infra/kubernetes/external-secret.aws.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..66d58aa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/infra/kubernetes/external-secret.aws.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+apiVersion: external-secrets.io/v1
+kind: ExternalSecret
+metadata:
+  name: dorisio-backend-secrets
+  namespace: dorisio
+spec:
+  refreshInterval: 1h
+  secretStoreRef:
+    kind: ClusterSecretStore
+    name: dorisio-aws-secrets
+  target:
+    name: dorisio-backend-secrets
+    creationPolicy: Owner
+  data:
+    - secretKey: DATABASE_URL
+      remoteRef:
+        key: dorisio/production/backend
+        property: DATABASE_URL
+    - secretKey: REDIS_URL
+      remoteRef:
+        key: dorisio/production/backend
+        property: REDIS_URL
+    - secretKey: JWT_SECRET
+      remoteRef:
+        key: dorisio/production/backend
+        property: JWT_SECRET
+    - secretKey: STELLAR_SERVER_SECRET_KEY
+      remoteRef:
+        key: dorisio/production/backend
+        property: STELLAR_SERVER_SECRET_KEY
+        optional: true
+    - secretKey: STRIPE_SECRET_KEY
+      remoteRef:
+        key: dorisio/production/backend
+        property: STRIPE_SECRET_KEY
+        optional: true
+    - secretKey: STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET
+      remoteRef:
+        key: dorisio/production/backend
+        property: STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET
+        optional: true
diff --git a/infra/kubernetes/kustomization.yaml b/infra/kubernetes/kustomization.yaml
index ceeddbf..cc86cb5 100644
--- a/infra/kubernetes/kustomization.yaml
+++ b/infra/kubernetes/kustomization.yaml
@@ -4,7 +4,8 @@ namespace: dorisio
 resources:
   - namespace.yaml
   - configmap.yaml
-  - secret.example.yaml
+  - secret-store.aws.yaml
+  - external-secret.aws.yaml
   - service.yaml
   - rollout.yaml
   - hpa.yaml
diff --git a/infra/kubernetes/secret-store.aws.yaml b/infra/kubernetes/secret-store.aws.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9559aad
--- /dev/null
+++ b/infra/kubernetes/secret-store.aws.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+apiVersion: external-secrets.io/v1
+kind: ClusterSecretStore
+metadata:
+  name: dorisio-aws-secrets
+spec:
+  provider:
+    aws:
+      service: SecretsManager
+      region: us-east-1
+      auth:
+        jwt:
+          serviceAccountRef:
+            name: external-secrets
+            namespace: external-secrets
diff --git a/src/config/env.ts b/src/config/env.ts
index 9b559ee..17b06fd 100644
--- a/src/config/env.ts
+++ b/src/config/env.ts
@@ -1,196 +1,18 @@
 /**
- * Backwards-compatible configuration entry point.
+ * Back-compat shim for the pre-centralized configuration module (issue #60).
  *
- * The canonical schema and layered loader live in `schema.ts` and `loader.ts`.
- * Older modules import from `config/env`, so this module intentionally re-exports
- * the same validated snapshot and the small compatibility helper used by the
- * security plugin.
+ * Keep existing `import { config } from '../config/env'` call sites working,
+ * but route all validation, secret resolution, and auditing through the single
+ * validated loader. Do not duplicate or bypass its schema here.
  */
-import dotenv from 'dotenv';
-import { z } from 'zod';
 import { getConfig } from './loader';
 
-dotenv.config();
-
-const EnvSchema = z.object({
-  NODE_ENV: z.enum(['development', 'production', 'test']).default('development'),
-  PORT: z.string().transform(Number).default('3000'),
-  LOG_LEVEL: z.enum(['trace', 'debug', 'info', 'warn', 'error', 'fatal']).default('info'),
-  // Max time (ms) to wait for in-flight requests to drain and resources to
-  // close on SIGTERM/SIGINT before forcing exit (#23).
-  SHUTDOWN_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('30000'),
-  DATABASE_URL: z.string().optional(),
-  DB_POOL_MIN: z.string().transform(Number).default('2'),
-  DB_POOL_MAX: z.string().transform(Number).default('20'),
-  DB_CONNECTION_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('5000'),
-  DB_IDLE_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('30000'),
-  DB_MAX_LIFETIME_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('1800000'),
-  DB_STATEMENT_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('10000'),
-  DB_SLOW_QUERY_THRESHOLD_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('200'),
-  DB_LOG_QUERIES: z.string().transform((val) => val === 'true').default('false'),
-  // Read-query result cache (1-5 minutes, per issue #12)
-  DB_QUERY_CACHE_TTL_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('60000'),
-  DB_QUERY_CACHE_MAX_TTL_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('300000'),
-  DB_QUERY_CACHE_MAX_ENTRIES: z.string().transform(Number).default('1000'),
-  DB_QUERY_CACHE_ENABLED: z.string().transform((val) => val !== 'false').default('true'),
-  DB_LEAK_DETECTION_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('30000'),
-  DB_CIRCUIT_BREAKER_FAILURES: z.string().transform(Number).default('5'),
-  DB_CIRCUIT_BREAKER_RESET_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('10000'),
-  // External services circuit breaker (Stellar Horizon, webhooks, etc.)
-  CIRCUIT_BREAKER_FAILURE_THRESHOLD: z.string().transform(Number).default('0.5'),
-  CIRCUIT_BREAKER_SUCCESS_THRESHOLD: z.string().transform(Number).default('2'),
-  CIRCUIT_BREAKER_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('60000'),
-  CIRCUIT_BREAKER_RESET_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('30000'),
-  CIRCUIT_BREAKER_MIN_REQUESTS: z.string().transform(Number).default('5'),
-  CIRCUIT_BREAKER_ROLLING_WINDOW_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('60000'),
-  CIRCUIT_BREAKER_VOLUME_THRESHOLD: z.string().transform(Number).default('5'),
-  STELLAR_CIRCUIT_BREAKER_ENABLED: z
-    .string()
-    .transform((val) => val === 'true')
-    .default('true'),
-  WEBHOOK_CIRCUIT_BREAKER_ENABLED: z
-    .string()
-    .transform((val) => val === 'true')
-    .default('true'),
-  REDIS_URL: z.string().default('redis://localhost:6379'),
-  REDIS_HOST: z.string().optional(),
-  REDIS_PORT: z.string().transform(Number).optional(),
-  REDIS_POOL_MIN: z.string().transform(Number).default('5'),
-  REDIS_POOL_MAX: z.string().transform(Number).default('20'),
-  REDIS_POOL_IDLE_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default(String(5 * 60 * 1000)),
-  REDIS_CONNECTION_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default(String(30 * 1000)),
-  REDIS_HEALTHCHECK_INTERVAL_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default(String(60 * 1000)),
-  CACHE_FALLBACK_MEMORY_SIZE: z.string().transform(Number).default('1000'),
-  // Background job processing
-  JOBS_WORKERS_ENABLED: z
-    .string()
-    .transform((val) => val === 'true')
-    .default('false'),
-  JOBS_CONCURRENCY: z.string().transform(Number).default('5'),
-  JOB_DEFAULT_ATTEMPTS: z.string().transform(Number).default('3'),
-  JOB_BACKOFF_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('1000'),
-  JWT_SECRET: z.string().default('your-secret-key-change-in-production'),
-  JWT_EXPIRES_IN: z.string().default('15m'),
-  JWT_REFRESH_EXPIRES_IN: z.string().default('7d'),
-  // Error tracking (Sentry compatible)
-  SENTRY_DSN: z.string().optional(),
-  ERROR_TRACKING_ENABLED: z
-    .string()
-    .transform((val) => val !== 'false')
-    .default('true'),
-  ERROR_TRACKING_SAMPLE_RATE: z
-    .string()
-    .transform(Number)
-    .refine((val) => !Number.isNaN(val) && val >= 0 && val <= 1, {
-      message: 'ERROR_TRACKING_SAMPLE_RATE must be between 0 and 1',
-    })
-    .default('1'),
-  ERROR_TRACKING_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('5000'),
-  STELLAR_NETWORK: z.enum(['testnet', 'mainnet', 'standalone']).default('testnet'),
-  STELLAR_HORIZON_URL: z.string().default('https://horizon-testnet.stellar.org'),
-  STELLAR_HORIZON_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('60000'),
-  STELLAR_SERVER_SECRET_KEY: z.string().optional(),
-  USDC_CONTRACT_ID: z.string().optional(),
-  USDC_ISSUER: z.string().optional(),
-  // External payment processing
-  PAYMENTS_PROVIDER: z.enum(['stripe', 'none']).default('none'),
-  STRIPE_SECRET_KEY: z.string().optional(),
-  STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET: z.string().optional(),
-  STRIPE_API_BASE: z.string().default('https://api.stripe.com'),
-  PAYMENTS_WEBHOOK_TOLERANCE_SECONDS: z.string().transform(Number).default('300'),
-  WALLET_NONCE_EXPIRY: z.string().transform(Number).default('600'),
-  MIN_PAYOUT_AMOUNT: z.string().transform(Number).default('50'),
-  FRONTEND_URL: z.string().default('http://localhost:3000'),
-  SENDGRID_API_KEY: z.string().optional(),
-  EMAIL_FROM: z.string().email().optional(),
-  // Reverse proxy trust (see docs/RATE_LIMITING.md). Controls how request.ip
-  // is derived from X-Forwarded-For. `false` (default) ignores forwarded
-  // headers; a number trusts that many proxy hops; otherwise a comma
-  // separated list of trusted proxy IPs/CIDRs.
-  TRUST_PROXY: z.string().default('false'),
-  // API rate limiting (see src/config/rate-limit.ts for policies)
-  RATE_LIMIT_ENABLED: z
-    .string()
-    .transform((val) => val !== 'false')
-    .default('true'),
-  RATE_LIMIT_STORE: z.enum(['memory', 'redis']).default('memory'),
-  RATE_LIMIT_PUBLIC_MAX: z.string().transform(Number).default('100'),
-  RATE_LIMIT_PUBLIC_WINDOW_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('60000'),
-  RATE_LIMIT_AUTHENTICATED_MAX: z.string().transform(Number).default('300'),
-  RATE_LIMIT_AUTHENTICATED_WINDOW_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('60000'),
-  RATE_LIMIT_SENSITIVE_MAX: z.string().transform(Number).default('10'),
-  RATE_LIMIT_SENSITIVE_WINDOW_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('60000'),
-  // Tip media uploads (#64). `MEDIA_STORAGE=local` keeps files on disk and
-  // `MEDIA_SCANNER=eicar` is the development scanner; production is expected to
-  // run `MEDIA_STORAGE=s3` with a clamd instance behind CLAMAV_HOST.
-  MEDIA_STORAGE: z.enum(['s3', 'local']).default('local'),
-  MEDIA_LOCAL_ROOT: z.string().default('var/media'),
-  MEDIA_STORAGE_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('15000'),
-  MEDIA_S3_BUCKET: z.string().optional(),
-  MEDIA_S3_REGION: z.string().default('us-east-1'),
-  MEDIA_S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID: z.string().optional(),
-  MEDIA_S3_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY: z.string().optional(),
-  MEDIA_S3_SESSION_TOKEN: z.string().optional(),
-  MEDIA_S3_ENDPOINT: z.string().optional(),
-  MEDIA_S3_FORCE_PATH_STYLE: z
-    .string()
-    .transform((val) => val === 'true')
-    .default('false'),
-  MEDIA_CDN_BASE_URL: z.string().optional(),
-  // direct = presigned upload straight to storage; proxy = bytes through the API.
-  MEDIA_UPLOAD_MODE: z.enum(['direct', 'proxy']).default('direct'),
-  MEDIA_UPLOAD_TTL_SECONDS: z.string().transform(Number).default(String(15 * 60)),
-  MEDIA_MAX_IMAGE_BYTES: z.string().transform(Number).default(String(8 * 1024 * 1024)),
-  MEDIA_MAX_VIDEO_BYTES: z.string().transform(Number).default(String(64 * 1024 * 1024)),
-  MEDIA_DEFAULT_QUOTA_BYTES: z.string().transform(Number).default(String(256 * 1024 * 1024)),
-  MEDIA_SCANNER: z
-    .enum(['clamav', 'eicar', 'none'])
-    .default(process.env.NODE_ENV === 'production' ? 'clamav' : 'eicar'),
-  CLAMAV_HOST: z.string().optional(),
-  CLAMAV_PORT: z.string().transform(Number).default('3310'),
-  CLAMAV_TIMEOUT_MS: z.string().transform(Number).default('15000'),
-  // sharp is optional; ffmpeg/ffprobe are probed at runtime.
-  MEDIA_PROCESSOR: z.enum(['auto', 'sharp', 'ffmpeg', 'none']).default('auto'),
-  MEDIA_TRANSCODE_VIDEO: z
-    .string()
-    .transform((val) => val === 'true')
-    .default('false'),
-  MEDIA_FFMPEG_PATH: z.string().default('ffmpeg'),
-  MEDIA_FFPROBE_PATH: z.string().default('ffprobe'),
-});
-
-type Environment = z.infer<typeof EnvSchema>;
-
-const validateEnv = (): Environment => {
-  const env = EnvSchema.safeParse(process.env);
-
-  if (!env.success) {
-    console.error('Invalid environment variables:', env.error.format());
-    process.exit(1);
-  }
-
-  return env.data;
-};
-
-export const config = validateEnv();
-
-/**
- * Convert the comma-separated CORS allowlist into the shape Fastify expects.
- * An omitted or wildcard value intentionally permits any origin.
- */
-export function getCorsOrigins(): true | string[] {
-  const raw = config.CORS_ORIGINS?.trim();
-  if (!raw || raw === '*') return true;
-
-  const origins = raw
-    .split(',')
-    .map((origin) => origin.trim())
-    .filter(Boolean);
+export const config = getConfig();
 
 /** Resolve CORS origins from the centralized configuration. */
 export function getCorsOrigins(): string[] | true {
-  const raw = config.CORS_ORIGINS;
-  if (!raw) return config.NODE_ENV === 'development' || config.NODE_ENV === 'test' ? true : [];
+  const raw = config.CORS_ORIGINS?.trim();
+  if (!raw || raw === '*') return true;
   const origins = raw.split(',').map((origin) => origin.trim()).filter(Boolean);
   return origins.length > 0 ? origins : true;
 }