diff --git a/backend/README.md b/backend/README.md
index 9f1e88c..6421b65 100644
--- a/backend/README.md
+++ b/backend/README.md
@@ -10,29 +10,52 @@ npm run backend
 
 Server starts at `http://localhost:4000` by default.
 
-## Database
+## Security Layer
 
-### Issue #26: Move from in-memory store to persistent DB
+### Helmet-style security headers
 
-- Uses a local JSON database file at `backend/data/brocode.json`.
-- You can override the location with `BROCODE_DB_PATH=/custom/path.json npm run backend`.
-- On first start, seed data is inserted for users, spots, catalog items, and a sample order.
-- New orders are validated against DB data (known `spotId`, `userId`, `productId`) and item pricing is always derived from catalog prices in the database.
+The server now sends strict security headers on every API response, including:
+
+- `Content-Security-Policy`
+- `Strict-Transport-Security`
+- `X-Content-Type-Options`
+- `X-Frame-Options`
+- `Referrer-Policy`
+- `Cross-Origin-*` hardening headers
+
+Configure CSP via `SECURITY_HEADERS_CSP`.
+
+### CORS
+
+CORS is applied to all endpoints with these defaults:
+
+- Allowed origin from `CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN` (defaults to `*`)
+- Allowed headers: `Content-Type`, `Authorization`
+- Allowed methods: `GET,POST,DELETE,OPTIONS`
 
-### Issue #28: Secure credential storage and verification
+### Rate limiting
 
-- Passwords are stored as salted `scrypt` hashes (not plaintext).
-- Legacy plaintext user passwords are auto-migrated to hashed values on successful login.
+Two limits are active:
 
-### Issue #29: Protect login endpoint from brute-force attempts
+1. **Global API limiter** per IP (`GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_REQUESTS` in `GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS`)
+2. **Login brute-force limiter** per `IP + username`
+   (`LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_ATTEMPTS` in `LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS`, temporary block for `LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_BLOCK_MS`)
 
-- Login is now rate-limited per `IP + username` key.
-- Defaults: 5 failed attempts within 15 minutes triggers a 15 minute temporary block (`429`).
-- Configure via env vars:
-  - `LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_ATTEMPTS`
-  - `LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS`
-  - `LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_BLOCK_MS`
+Both return HTTP `429` and `Retry-After` headers.
+
+### Password hashing
+
+User credentials are stored as salted hashes (using Node crypto `scrypt`) and never as plaintext.
+Legacy plaintext records auto-migrate to hashed values at successful login.
+
+## Database
+
+- Uses a local JSON database file at `backend/data/brocode.json`.
+- You can override the location with `BROCODE_DB_PATH=/custom/path.json npm run backend`.
+- On first start, seed data is inserted for users, spots, catalog items, and a sample order.
+- New orders are validated against DB data (known `spotId`, `userId`, `productId`) and item pricing is always derived from catalog prices in the database.
 
+## Deployment (Render / Railway / AWS EC2)
 ### Issue #31: Redis-backed caching + session/performance primitives
 
 - Added optional Redis integration (`REDIS_URL`) with automatic in-memory fallback when Redis is unavailable.
@@ -56,18 +79,12 @@ Server starts at `http://localhost:4000` by default.
 
 ### Issue #30: Secure backend data access with signed auth tokens + authorization
 
-- Login now returns an HMAC-signed bearer token (replacing predictable demo tokens).
-- Tokens include user id, role, and expiry, and are validated with constant-time signature checks.
-- Data endpoints now require `Authorization: Bearer <token>` and enforce role access:
-  - `GET /api/orders` → users can only read their own orders; admins can read all.
-  - `POST /api/orders` → users can create only for themselves; admins can create for any user.
-  - `GET /api/orders/:id` → users can read only their own order; admins can read any order.
-  - `GET /api/bills/:spotId` and `DELETE /api/users/:userId` → admin only.
-- Configure via env vars:
-  - `AUTH_TOKEN_SECRET`
-  - `AUTH_TOKEN_TTL_SECONDS`
-  - `CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN`
+See [`backend/deployment.md`](./deployment.md) for step-by-step deployment options and env setup for:
 
+- Backend hosting: **Render**, **Railway**, **AWS EC2**
+- PostgreSQL: **Supabase** or **Neon**
+- Redis: **Upstash**
+- File storage: **AWS S3** or **Cloudinary**
 ### Background jobs (BullMQ + Redis)
 
 - The backend initializes BullMQ queues for:
diff --git a/backend/deployment.md b/backend/deployment.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f659d23
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/deployment.md
@@ -0,0 +1,108 @@
+# Deployment guide
+
+This project can be deployed with the following stack:
+
+- **Backend**: Render, Railway, or AWS EC2
+- **Database (PostgreSQL)**: Supabase or Neon
+- **Redis**: Upstash
+- **File storage**: AWS S3 or Cloudinary
+
+> Current repo runtime still uses a local JSON DB for persistence. `DATABASE_URL`, `REDIS_URL`, and storage variables are wired into env validation so you can safely provide production credentials while evolving integrations.
+
+## 1) Required environment variables
+
+Use these common variables in all platforms:
+
+```bash
+PORT=4000
+AUTH_TOKEN_SECRET=replace-with-long-secret
+AUTH_TOKEN_TTL_SECONDS=43200
+CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN=https://your-frontend-domain.com
+
+# Security/rate-limit tuning
+SECURITY_HEADERS_CSP=default-src 'self'
+GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_REQUESTS=300
+GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS=900000
+LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_ATTEMPTS=5
+LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS=900000
+LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_BLOCK_MS=900000
+
+# PostgreSQL (Supabase/Neon)
+DATABASE_URL=postgresql://...
+
+# Redis (Upstash)
+REDIS_URL=redis://...
+UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_URL=https://...
+UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_TOKEN=...
+
+# Storage (choose one)
+STORAGE_DRIVER=s3
+AWS_REGION=ap-south-1
+AWS_S3_BUCKET=...
+AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=...
+AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=...
+
+# OR
+STORAGE_DRIVER=cloudinary
+CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_NAME=...
+CLOUDINARY_API_KEY=...
+CLOUDINARY_API_SECRET=...
+```
+
+## 2) Render
+
+1. Create a **Web Service** from this repo.
+2. Build command: `npm install && npm run build`
+3. Start command: `npm run backend`
+4. Add the env vars above in Render dashboard.
+5. Add PostgreSQL (Supabase/Neon external) and Upstash connection URLs.
+
+## 3) Railway
+
+1. Create a new Railway project linked to this repo.
+2. Set start command to `npm run backend`.
+3. Add all env vars in the Variables tab.
+4. Set custom domain and update `CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN`.
+
+## 4) AWS EC2
+
+1. Provision Ubuntu instance and install Node.js LTS.
+2. Clone repo and run `npm install`.
+3. Configure env vars in systemd service file.
+4. Run service with `npm run backend` via systemd.
+5. Put Nginx in front with HTTPS (Let's Encrypt).
+
+Example service snippet:
+
+```ini
+[Service]
+WorkingDirectory=/srv/Brocode-Party-Update-App
+ExecStart=/usr/bin/npm run backend
+Environment=PORT=4000
+Environment=AUTH_TOKEN_SECRET=replace-me
+Restart=always
+```
+
+## 5) PostgreSQL provider choice
+
+- **Supabase**: Copy pooled connection string from Project Settings → Database.
+- **Neon**: Copy connection string from Neon project dashboard.
+- Set as `DATABASE_URL`.
+
+## 6) Redis (Upstash)
+
+- Create Redis database in Upstash.
+- Use TCP URL as `REDIS_URL` (if your runtime supports it).
+- For REST-based access, set both `UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_URL` and `UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_TOKEN`.
+
+## 7) File storage
+
+- **AWS S3**: set `STORAGE_DRIVER=s3` + AWS credentials and bucket vars.
+- **Cloudinary**: set `STORAGE_DRIVER=cloudinary` + Cloudinary keys.
+
+## 8) Post-deploy checks
+
+- `GET /api/health` returns status 200.
+- Login endpoint returns token and includes security headers.
+- CORS allows only your front-end domain.
+- Rate limiting returns 429 after repeated requests.
diff --git a/backend/env.js b/backend/env.js
index 32e9b15..85af5e4 100644
--- a/backend/env.js
+++ b/backend/env.js
@@ -55,6 +55,21 @@ const envSchema = z.object({
   LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_ATTEMPTS: z.string().regex(/^\d+$/).optional(),
   LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS: z.string().regex(/^\d+$/).optional(),
   LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_BLOCK_MS: z.string().regex(/^\d+$/).optional(),
+  GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_REQUESTS: z.string().regex(/^\d+$/).optional(),
+  GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS: z.string().regex(/^\d+$/).optional(),
+  SECURITY_HEADERS_CSP: z.string().optional(),
+  DATABASE_URL: z.string().optional(),
+  REDIS_URL: z.string().optional(),
+  UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_URL: z.string().optional(),
+  UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_TOKEN: z.string().optional(),
+  STORAGE_DRIVER: z.enum(['s3', 'cloudinary', 'local']).optional(),
+  AWS_REGION: z.string().optional(),
+  AWS_S3_BUCKET: z.string().optional(),
+  AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID: z.string().optional(),
+  AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY: z.string().optional(),
+  CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_NAME: z.string().optional(),
+  CLOUDINARY_API_KEY: z.string().optional(),
+  CLOUDINARY_API_SECRET: z.string().optional(),
   REDIS_URL: z.string().url().optional(),
   REDIS_KEY_PREFIX: z.string().optional(),
   CACHE_DEFAULT_TTL_SECONDS: z.string().regex(/^\d+$/).optional(),
diff --git a/backend/server.js b/backend/server.js
index 9e1db7d..a7dbef9 100644
--- a/backend/server.js
+++ b/backend/server.js
@@ -16,19 +16,67 @@ const AUTH_TOKEN_SECRET = process.env.AUTH_TOKEN_SECRET || 'brocode-dev-secret-c
 const AUTH_TOKEN_TTL_SECONDS = Number(process.env.AUTH_TOKEN_TTL_SECONDS || 60 * 60 * 12);
 const EVENT_STATE_DEFAULT_TTL_SECONDS = Number(process.env.EVENT_STATE_DEFAULT_TTL_SECONDS || 120);
 const CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN = process.env.CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN || '*';
+const GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_REQUESTS = Number(process.env.GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_REQUESTS || 300);
+const GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS = Number(process.env.GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS || 15 * 60 * 1000);
+const SECURITY_HEADERS_CSP = process.env.SECURITY_HEADERS_CSP || "default-src 'self'";
 const loginAttempts = new Map();
+const globalRequests = new Map();
 const SWAGGER_HTML = buildSwaggerHtml();
 const jobSystem = await createJobSystem();
 
-const getLoginKey = (req, username) => {
+const getLoginKey = (req, username) => `${getRequestIp(req)}:${username}`;
+
+const getRateLimitState = (key) => {
+  const now = Date.now();
+  const existing = loginAttempts.get(key);
+
+  if (!existing) {
+    const state = { count: 0, windowStart: now, blockedUntil: 0 };
+    loginAttempts.set(key, state);
+    return state;
+  }
+
+  if (existing.blockedUntil > 0 && existing.blockedUntil <= now) {
+    existing.count = 0;
+    existing.windowStart = now;
+    existing.blockedUntil = 0;
+  }
+
+  if (now - existing.windowStart > LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS) {
+    existing.count = 0;
+    existing.windowStart = now;
+  }
+
+  return existing;
+};
+
+
+const getGlobalRateLimitState = (key) => {
+  const now = Date.now();
+  const existing = globalRequests.get(key);
+
+  if (!existing || now - existing.windowStart > GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS) {
+    const state = { count: 0, windowStart: now };
+    globalRequests.set(key, state);
+    return state;
+  }
+
+  return existing;
+};
+
+const getRequestIp = (req) => {
   const forwardedFor = req.headers['x-forwarded-for'];
   const firstForwardedIp = Array.isArray(forwardedFor)
     ? forwardedFor[0]
     : typeof forwardedFor === 'string'
       ? forwardedFor.split(',')[0]
       : '';
-  const remoteIp = firstForwardedIp?.trim() || req.socket?.remoteAddress || 'unknown-ip';
-  return `${remoteIp}:${username}`;
+
+  return firstForwardedIp?.trim() || req.socket?.remoteAddress || 'unknown-ip';
+};
+
+const clearRateLimitState = (key) => {
+  loginAttempts.delete(key);
 };
 
 const parseBearerToken = (authHeader) => {
@@ -109,13 +157,42 @@ const getUserFromAuthHeader = async (authHeader) => {
   return database.getUserById(verifiedPayload.sub);
 };
 
+const recordFailedLoginAttempt = (key) => {
+  const now = Date.now();
+  const state = getRateLimitState(key);
+  state.count += 1;
+
+  if (state.count >= LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_ATTEMPTS) {
+    state.blockedUntil = now + LOGIN_RATE_LIMIT_BLOCK_MS;
+  }
+};
+
+const sendJson = (res, statusCode, body, extraHeaders = {}) => {
 const sendJson = (res, statusCode, body) => {
   res.writeHead(statusCode, {
     'Content-Type': 'application/json',
     'Access-Control-Allow-Origin': CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN,
     'Access-Control-Allow-Headers': 'Content-Type, Authorization',
     'Access-Control-Allow-Methods': 'GET,POST,DELETE,OPTIONS',
+    'Cross-Origin-Opener-Policy': 'same-origin',
+    'Cross-Origin-Resource-Policy': 'same-origin',
+    'Origin-Agent-Cluster': '?1',
+    'Referrer-Policy': 'no-referrer',
+    'Strict-Transport-Security': 'max-age=31536000; includeSubDomains',
+    'X-Content-Type-Options': 'nosniff',
+    'X-DNS-Prefetch-Control': 'off',
+    'X-Download-Options': 'noopen',
+    'X-Frame-Options': 'SAMEORIGIN',
+    'X-Permitted-Cross-Domain-Policies': 'none',
+    'X-XSS-Protection': '0',
+    'Content-Security-Policy': SECURITY_HEADERS_CSP,
+    ...extraHeaders,
   });
+  if (statusCode === 204) {
+    res.end();
+    return;
+  }
+
   res.end(JSON.stringify(body));
 };
 
@@ -156,6 +233,23 @@ const server = createServer(async (req, res) => {
   const parsedUrl = new URL(req.url || '/', `http://localhost:${port}`);
   const path = parsedUrl.pathname;
 
+  const globalRateLimitKey = getRequestIp(req);
+  const globalRateLimitState = getGlobalRateLimitState(globalRateLimitKey);
+  globalRateLimitState.count += 1;
+
+  if (globalRateLimitState.count > GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_REQUESTS) {
+    const retryAfterSeconds = Math.ceil(
+      (GLOBAL_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS - (Date.now() - globalRateLimitState.windowStart)) / 1000
+    );
+    sendJson(
+      res,
+      429,
+      { error: 'Too many requests. Please try again later.', retryAfterSeconds },
+      { 'Retry-After': String(Math.max(retryAfterSeconds, 1)) }
+    );
+    return;
+  }
+
   if (method === 'OPTIONS') {
     sendJson(res, 204, {});
     return;
@@ -193,6 +287,19 @@ const server = createServer(async (req, res) => {
       }
 
       const loginKey = getLoginKey(req, username);
+      const rateLimitState = getRateLimitState(loginKey);
+      const now = Date.now();
+      if (rateLimitState.blockedUntil > now) {
+        const retryAfterSeconds = Math.ceil((rateLimitState.blockedUntil - now) / 1000);
+        sendJson(
+          res,
+          429,
+          {
+            error: 'Too many failed login attempts. Please try again later.',
+            retryAfterSeconds,
+          },
+          { 'Retry-After': String(Math.max(retryAfterSeconds, 1)) }
+        );
       const retryAfterSeconds = await rateLimiter.getBlockedSeconds(loginKey);
       if (retryAfterSeconds > 0) {
         sendJson(res, 429, {