diff --git a/cmd/agent-worker/main.go b/cmd/agent-worker/main.go
index c0b9f4c..5260c2b 100644
--- a/cmd/agent-worker/main.go
+++ b/cmd/agent-worker/main.go
@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@ import (
 	"fmt"
 	"net/http"
 	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
 	"time"
 
 	"git.cin.su/m/Assistant/adapters/agentbridge"
@@ -39,7 +41,7 @@ func main() {
 	}
 	defer repository.Close()
 	var executor ports.AgentExecutor
-	if bridgeURL := os.Getenv("AGENT_EXECUTION_BRIDGE_URL"); bridgeURL != "" {
+	if bridgeURL, bridgeConfigured := loadProtectedBridgeURL(); bridgeConfigured {
 		executor, err = agentbridge.NewHTTPExecutor(bridgeURL, &http.Client{Timeout: *leaseTTL})
 		if err != nil {
 			fmt.Fprintln(os.Stderr, err)
@@ -81,6 +83,27 @@ func main() {
 	}
 }
 
+func loadProtectedBridgeURL() (string, bool) {
+	return loadProtectedBridgeURLFrom("/run/secrets", "/run/secrets/agent_execution_bridge_url")
+}
+
+func loadProtectedBridgeURLFrom(root, path string) (string, bool) {
+	clean := filepath.Clean(path)
+	cleanRoot := filepath.Clean(root)
+	if clean != cleanRoot && !strings.HasPrefix(clean, cleanRoot+string(os.PathSeparator)) {
+		return "", false
+	}
+	payload, err := os.ReadFile(clean)
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", false
+	}
+	value := strings.TrimSpace(string(payload))
+	if value == "" || strings.ContainsAny(value, "\r\n") {
+		return "", false
+	}
+	return value, true
+}
+
 func resolveDatabasePassword(name, refName string, consumer secretcontracts.RuntimeConsumer) (string, error) {
 	if _, ok := os.LookupEnv(name); ok {
 		return "", fmt.Errorf("%s direct environment secret is forbidden", name)
diff --git a/cmd/agent-worker/status.go b/cmd/agent-worker/status.go
index 645eaf5..72f9ed5 100644
--- a/cmd/agent-worker/status.go
+++ b/cmd/agent-worker/status.go
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ func workerStatusHandler(executorConfigured bool) http.Handler {
 		ExecutorConfigured: executorConfigured,
 		Mode:               "recovery-only",
 		Ready:              false,
-		Reason:             "AGENT_EXECUTION_BRIDGE_URL is not configured",
+		Reason:             "protected agent execution bridge URL is not configured",
 	}
 	if executorConfigured {
 		status.Mode = "execution"
diff --git a/cmd/agent-worker/status_test.go b/cmd/agent-worker/status_test.go
index 8374f28..0e36b6c 100644
--- a/cmd/agent-worker/status_test.go
+++ b/cmd/agent-worker/status_test.go
@@ -4,9 +4,28 @@ import (
 	"encoding/json"
 	"net/http"
 	"net/http/httptest"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
 	"testing"
 )
 
+func TestLoadProtectedBridgeURL(t *testing.T) {
+	root := t.TempDir()
+	path := filepath.Join(root, "agent_execution_bridge_url")
+	if err := os.WriteFile(path, []byte("http://bridge.local\n"), 0o600); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if value, configured := loadProtectedBridgeURLFrom(root, path); !configured || value != "http://bridge.local" {
+		t.Fatalf("protected bridge was not loaded: %q %v", value, configured)
+	}
+	if value, configured := loadProtectedBridgeURLFrom(root, filepath.Join(root, "missing")); configured || value != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("missing bridge was accepted: %q %v", value, configured)
+	}
+	if value, configured := loadProtectedBridgeURLFrom(root, "/tmp/not-protected"); configured || value != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("path outside protected root was accepted: %q %v", value, configured)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestWorkerStatusReportsRecoveryOnlyWithoutExecutor(t *testing.T) {
 	response := httptest.NewRecorder()
 	workerStatusHandler(false).ServeHTTP(response, httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/status", nil))
diff --git a/deploy/docker-compose.prod.yml b/deploy/docker-compose.prod.yml
index 0ba0e5a..65895c1 100644
--- a/deploy/docker-compose.prod.yml
+++ b/deploy/docker-compose.prod.yml
@@ -114,7 +114,6 @@ services:
       WORK_POSTGRES_CREDENTIAL_REF: credential://domovoy/work/db-password/v1
       WORK_POSTGRES_PASSWORD_FILE: /run/secrets/work_db_password
       SECRET_BACKEND_ROOT: /run/secrets
-      AGENT_EXECUTION_BRIDGE_URL: ${AGENT_EXECUTION_BRIDGE_URL:-}
     depends_on: { postgres: { condition: service_healthy } }
     volumes:
       - assistant_core_secrets:/run/secrets:ro
diff --git a/dev/ACTIVE_TASK.json b/dev/ACTIVE_TASK.json
index 0760131..539e6fc 100644
--- a/dev/ACTIVE_TASK.json
+++ b/dev/ACTIVE_TASK.json
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 {
-  "task_file": "dev/tasks/DEV-000184-gpu-openai-protected-provider.json",
-  "task_id": "DEV-000184",
+  "task_file": "dev/tasks/DEV-000185-agent-bridge-protected-config.json",
+  "task_id": "DEV-000185",
   "task_revision": 1
 }
diff --git a/dev/tasks/DEV-000185-agent-bridge-protected-config.json b/dev/tasks/DEV-000185-agent-bridge-protected-config.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d42bc26
--- /dev/null
+++ b/dev/tasks/DEV-000185-agent-bridge-protected-config.json
@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+{
+  "task_id": "DEV-000185",
+  "task_revision": 1,
+  "architecture_revision": "ADR-0017",
+  "base_repo_revision": "7ab4b02afa78d5c65eb1545bfd6e117cc1cdfad7",
+  "risk_tier": "E",
+  "intent": "Load the optional external Agent Execution bridge endpoint from Domovoy protected storage and preserve recovery-only operation when it is absent or invalid.",
+  "requirement_ids": ["protected bridge configuration", "degraded recovery without bridge", "durable dispatch when bridge is configured"],
+  "allowed_change_scope": {"modules": ["agent-worker", "deployment"], "paths": ["cmd/agent-worker/**", "deploy/docker-compose.prod.yml", "dev/ACTIVE_TASK.json", "dev/tasks/DEV-000185-agent-bridge-protected-config.json"]},
+  "forbidden_change_scope": {"paths": ["architecture/**", "database/**", "contracts/**", "security/**", ".gitea/**"]},
+  "allowed_architecture_delta": {"new_cross_module_dependencies": 0, "new_canonical_owners": 0, "new_privileges": 1, "new_third_party_dependencies": 0, "new_database_owner_roles": 0},
+  "contracts": {"consume": ["existing agentbridge HTTP executor", "protected runtime configuration files", "existing work dispatch contract"], "may_change": []},
+  "semantic_owner": "work agent execution adapter",
+  "canonical_state": [],
+  "state_transitions": ["missing/invalid protected bridge URL -> recovery-only", "valid protected bridge URL -> execution mode"],
+  "side_effects_and_privileges": ["outbound HTTP calls only to protected configured bridge endpoint"],
+  "persistence_and_migrations": ["no schema changes; protected file storage only"],
+  "failure_retry_restart": ["bridge errors remain handled by existing worker cycle", "restart reloads protected URL", "missing bridge never prevents recovery"],
+  "assumptions": ["protected secret volume is mounted read-only", "bridge URL file is deployment-owned"],
+  "acceptance_scenarios": ["protected URL enables execution mode", "missing URL keeps recovery-only mode", "URL is not read from environment", "URL value never appears in status"],
+  "required_tests": ["go test ./cmd/agent-worker/...", "go vet ./...", "go run ./cmd/devctl preflight -task dev/tasks/DEV-000185-agent-bridge-protected-config.json", "go run ./cmd/devctl check-diff -task dev/tasks/DEV-000185-agent-bridge-protected-config.json", "go run ./cmd/devctl check-architecture", "go run ./cmd/devctl independent", "git diff --check", "CI", "production status and recovery checks"],
+  "terminal_gap_states": ["BLOCKED_BY_MISSING_CAPABILITY", "BLOCKED_BY_SPEC_GAP", "BLOCKED_BY_CONFLICT"]
+}