diff --git a/api/notifications.php b/api/notifications.php
index 737b2b4..5dee0b2 100644
--- a/api/notifications.php
+++ b/api/notifications.php
@@ -59,7 +59,9 @@ $assignSql = "SELECT
   ORDER BY al.created_at DESC
   LIMIT 15";
 
-$assignLike = '%"assigned_to":' . $userId . '%';
+// Match the exact JSON value with a trailing delimiter so user 12 doesn't also
+// match 120/123/etc. The assign detail is logged as {"assigned_to":<int>}.
+$assignLike = '%"assigned_to":' . (int)$userId . '}%';
 $stmt = $conn->prepare($assignSql);
 $stmt->bind_param('is', $userId, $assignLike);
 $stmt->execute();
diff --git a/api/update_ticket.php b/api/update_ticket.php
index e8ae0f5..6514ea1 100644
--- a/api/update_ticket.php
+++ b/api/update_ticket.php
@@ -127,6 +127,25 @@ try {
                 ];
             }
 
+            // Validate visibility BEFORE any DB write so a bad payload can't leave the
+            // ticket half-updated (core fields committed but request reported as failed).
+            $visibilityGroups = null;
+            if (isset($data['visibility'])) {
+                $visibilityGroups = $data['visibility_groups'] ?? null;
+                // Convert array to comma-separated string if needed
+                if (is_array($visibilityGroups)) {
+                    $visibilityGroups = implode(',', array_map('trim', $visibilityGroups));
+                }
+
+                // Internal visibility requires at least one group
+                if ($data['visibility'] === 'internal' && (empty($visibilityGroups) || trim($visibilityGroups) === '')) {
+                    return [
+                        'success' => false,
+                        'error' => 'Internal visibility requires at least one group to be specified'
+                    ];
+                }
+            }
+
             // Validate status transition using workflow model
             if ($currentTicket['status'] !== $updateData['status']) {
                 $allowed = $this->workflowModel->isTransitionAllowed(
@@ -160,22 +179,8 @@ try {
                 return $response;
             }
 
-            // Handle visibility update if provided
+            // Handle visibility update if provided (already validated above)
             if (isset($data['visibility'])) {
-                $visibilityGroups = $data['visibility_groups'] ?? null;
-                // Convert array to comma-separated string if needed
-                if (is_array($visibilityGroups)) {
-                    $visibilityGroups = implode(',', array_map('trim', $visibilityGroups));
-                }
-
-                // Validate internal visibility requires groups
-                if ($data['visibility'] === 'internal' && (empty($visibilityGroups) || trim($visibilityGroups) === '')) {
-                    return [
-                        'success' => false,
-                        'error' => 'Internal visibility requires at least one group to be specified'
-                    ];
-                }
-
                 $visResult = $this->ticketModel->updateVisibility($id, $data['visibility'], $visibilityGroups, $this->userId);
                 if ($visResult && $this->userId) {
                     $this->auditLog->log(
diff --git a/api/watch_ticket.php b/api/watch_ticket.php
index 3571f0a..6889e91 100644
--- a/api/watch_ticket.php
+++ b/api/watch_ticket.php
@@ -103,7 +103,13 @@ while ($row = $watchersResult->fetch_assoc()) {
     $watchers[] = ['user_id' => (int)$row['user_id'], 'display_name' => $row['display_name']];
 }
 $watchersStmt->close();
-$count = count($watchers);
+
+// True watcher count (the list above is capped at 6 for the avatar group)
+$countStmt = $conn->prepare("SELECT COUNT(*) AS cnt FROM ticket_watchers WHERE ticket_id = ?");
+$countStmt->bind_param("i", $ticketId);
+$countStmt->execute();
+$count = (int)$countStmt->get_result()->fetch_assoc()['cnt'];
+$countStmt->close();
 
 echo json_encode([
     'success'       => true,
diff --git a/assets/js/markdown.js b/assets/js/markdown.js
index d413e11..962f2e1 100644
--- a/assets/js/markdown.js
+++ b/assets/js/markdown.js
@@ -25,10 +25,14 @@ function parseMarkdown(markdown) {
 
     let html = markdown;
 
-    // Escape HTML first to prevent XSS
+    // Escape HTML first to prevent XSS. Quotes MUST be escaped too: user-controlled
+    // text (e.g. image/link URLs and alt text) is later interpolated into "..."
+    // attributes, so an unescaped " would break out and inject event handlers.
     html = html.replace(/&/g, '&amp;')
                .replace(/</g, '&lt;')
-               .replace(/>/g, '&gt;');
+               .replace(/>/g, '&gt;')
+               .replace(/"/g, '&quot;')
+               .replace(/'/g, '&#39;');
 
     // Ticket references (#123456789) - convert to clickable links
     html = html.replace(/#(\d{9})\b/g, '<a href="/ticket/$1" class="ticket-link-ref">#$1</a>');
diff --git a/cron/cleanup_ratelimit.php b/cron/cleanup_ratelimit.php
index db37f64..fad4471 100644
--- a/cron/cleanup_ratelimit.php
+++ b/cron/cleanup_ratelimit.php
@@ -6,12 +6,10 @@
  *
  * Cleans up expired rate limit files from the temp directory.
  * Should be run via cron every 5-10 minutes:
- *   */
-
-5 * * * * / usr / bin / php / path / to / cron / cleanup_ratelimit . php
+ *   5 * * * * /usr/bin/php /path/to/cron/cleanup_ratelimit.php
  *
- * This script can also be run manually for immediate cleanup .
- *  /
+ * This script can also be run manually for immediate cleanup.
+ */
 
 // Prevent web access
 if (php_sapi_name() !== 'cli') {
diff --git a/cron/create_recurring_tickets.php b/cron/create_recurring_tickets.php
index fb9aca4..f569570 100644
--- a/cron/create_recurring_tickets.php
+++ b/cron/create_recurring_tickets.php
@@ -5,13 +5,11 @@
  * Recurring Tickets Cron Job
  *
  * Run this script via cron to automatically create tickets from recurring schedules.
- * Recommended: Run every 5-15 minutes
+ * Recommended: run every 5-15 minutes.
  *
- * Example crontab entry:
- * */
-
-10 * * * * / usr / bin / php / path / to / cron / create_recurring_tickets . php >> / var / log / recurring_tickets . log 2 > & 1
- *  /
+ * Example crontab entry (minute 10 of every hour):
+ *   10 * * * * /usr/bin/php /path/to/cron/create_recurring_tickets.php >> /var/log/recurring_tickets.log 2>&1
+ */
 
 // Change to project root directory
 chdir(dirname(__DIR__));