diff --git a/src/api/assets.rs b/src/api/assets.rs
index c8406ff..eb395f2 100644
--- a/src/api/assets.rs
+++ b/src/api/assets.rs
@@ -112,6 +112,22 @@ fn parse_path(path: &str) -> Result<(Option<String>, String), ApiError> {
     }
 }
 
+/// Parse a path for serving only – preserves original case, only validates for path traversal.
+fn parse_serve_path(path: &str) -> Result<(Option<String>, String), ApiError> {
+    let path = path.trim_start_matches('/');
+    if path.contains("..") || path.contains('\\') {
+        return Err(ApiError::BadRequest("Invalid asset path".into()));
+    }
+    let mut parts = path.splitn(2, '/');
+    match (parts.next(), parts.next()) {
+        (Some(a), None) if !a.is_empty() => Ok((None, a.to_string())),
+        (Some(folder), Some(filename)) if !folder.is_empty() && !filename.is_empty() => {
+            Ok((Some(folder.to_string()), filename.to_string()))
+        }
+        _ => Err(ApiError::BadRequest("Invalid asset path".into())),
+    }
+}
+
 /// Read all image files from a directory, tagging them with the folder name.
 async fn read_images(
     dir: &std::path::Path,
@@ -521,7 +537,7 @@ pub async fn get_asset(
 ) -> Result<axum::response::Response, ApiError> {
     let env = state.effective_environment_from_param(env_param.environment.as_deref().map(|s| s.trim()).filter(|s| !s.is_empty()));
     let assets_dir = state.assets_dir_for(&env);
-    let (folder, filename) = parse_path(&path)?;
+    let (folder, filename) = parse_serve_path(&path)?;
     let file_path = match &folder {
         Some(f) => assets_dir.join(f).join(&filename),
         None => assets_dir.join(&filename),