diff --git a/.env.docker.example b/.env.docker.example
index 4a2d8c5..d3ea8c3 100644
--- a/.env.docker.example
+++ b/.env.docker.example
@@ -6,6 +6,13 @@
 # docker-compose.npm.yml interpolates the variables below; pin them so the
 # server-side `cp .env.docker.example .env.docker` yields a working --env-file.
 
+# ---- Released image (required) ----
+# The NPM deployment pulls the released, attested image from GHCR; it never builds.
+# Pin a DIGEST, not a tag: no `latest` tag is published, and only a digest is immutable.
+# Resolve it from the release asset `application-release-manifest.json` (.image.digest),
+# or:  docker buildx imagetools inspect ghcr.io/berntpopp/stringdb-link:<version>
+STRINGDB_LINK_IMAGE=ghcr.io/berntpopp/stringdb-link@sha256:0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
+
 # ---- Nginx Proxy Manager (docker-compose.npm.yml) ----
 # External NPM network the container joins for reverse-proxy routing.
 NPM_SHARED_NETWORK_NAME=npm_default
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 0d23e9d..e6088c4 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -5,6 +5,20 @@ All notable changes to this project are documented here.
 The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.1.0/),
 and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).
 
+## [4.0.6] - 2026-07-14
+
+### Changed
+
+- **The NPM deployment pulls the released image instead of building from source.**
+  `docker/docker-compose.npm.yml` is a pure overlay on `docker-compose.yml`, which
+  defines `build:` — so the deployed chain (`docker-compose.yml -f
+  docker-compose.npm.yml`) inherited it and the server rebuilt the image on every
+  deploy, even though CI had already published an attested, digest-addressable image
+  to GHCR. The overlay now does `build: !reset null` and requires `STRINGDB_LINK_IMAGE`
+  pinned to a digest, failing closed when it is unset. Nothing else changed:
+  `container_name` (`stringdb_link_server`, which NPM forwards to), the Compose project
+  name, the healthcheck, the hardening block, networks and `command` are all preserved.
+
 ## [Unreleased]
 
 ## [4.0.5] - 2026-07-13
diff --git a/docker/docker-compose.npm.yml b/docker/docker-compose.npm.yml
index 21d33d5..b20980a 100644
--- a/docker/docker-compose.npm.yml
+++ b/docker/docker-compose.npm.yml
@@ -7,6 +7,14 @@ name: stringdb-link-npm
 
 services:
   stringdb-link:
+    # Deploy pulls the released, attested image; it never builds from source.
+    # `!reset` is required: the base compose file defines `build:`, and without this
+    # the merged model would still be buildable.
+    # Pin a digest, not a tag: there is no `latest`, and only a digest is immutable.
+    build: !reset null
+    image: ${STRINGDB_LINK_IMAGE:?Set STRINGDB_LINK_IMAGE to ghcr.io/berntpopp/stringdb-link@sha256:<digest>}
+    pull_policy: missing
+
     # Production environment optimized for NPM
     environment:
       LOGGING__LEVEL: INFO
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index 7743777..ebabca2 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ build-backend = "hatchling.build"
 
 [project]
 name = "stringdb-link"
-version = "4.0.5"
+version = "4.0.6"
 description = "High-performance unified API server for STRING protein-protein interaction database with MCP integration"
 readme = "README.md"
 license = { text = "MIT" }
diff --git a/uv.lock b/uv.lock
index 4a1d81a..db786b7 100644
--- a/uv.lock
+++ b/uv.lock
@@ -1697,7 +1697,7 @@ wheels = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "stringdb-link"
-version = "4.0.5"
+version = "4.0.6"
 source = { editable = "." }
 dependencies = [
     { name = "asgi-correlation-id" },