diff --git a/.jules/sentinel.md b/.jules/sentinel.md
index 57c2298..ea4e8c3 100644
--- a/.jules/sentinel.md
+++ b/.jules/sentinel.md
@@ -2,3 +2,8 @@
 **Vulnerability:** Missing input length limits on user-provided strings (Player Name) could lead to UI breakage or minor DoS.
 **Learning:** Enforcing limits at both the UI layer (maxLength) and the System layer (trim/slice) provides defense-in-depth and ensures data integrity regardless of the entry point.
 **Prevention:** Always apply length constraints and sanitization to user-controlled inputs that are persisted or rendered globally.
+
+## 2025-05-16 - Structural Validation for Deserialized Data
+**Vulnerability:** Insecure deserialization of save game data from `localStorage` using blind type casting (`as SaveData`).
+**Learning:** Blindly trusting data from `localStorage` or other external sources can lead to runtime crashes or logic errors if the data is malformed or maliciously modified.
+**Prevention:** Always perform structural validation (checking presence and types of required fields) on deserialized JSON data before using it in application logic.
diff --git a/src/game/systems/SaveSystem.ts b/src/game/systems/SaveSystem.ts
index e3044ac..c7d7c11 100644
--- a/src/game/systems/SaveSystem.ts
+++ b/src/game/systems/SaveSystem.ts
@@ -34,12 +34,33 @@ export class SaveSystem {
 
   static deserialize(serialized: string): SaveData | null {
     try {
-      return JSON.parse(serialized, (key, value) => this.reviver(key, value)) as SaveData;
+      const parsed = JSON.parse(serialized, (key, value) => this.reviver(key, value)) as unknown;
+      if (this.isValidSaveData(parsed)) {
+        return parsed;
+      }
+      return null;
     } catch {
       return null;
     }
   }
 
+  private static isValidSaveData(data: unknown): data is SaveData {
+    if (typeof data !== 'object' || data === null) {
+      return false;
+    }
+
+    const candidate = data as Record<string, unknown>;
+    return (
+      Array.isArray(candidate.players) &&
+      typeof candidate.currentPlayerId === 'string' &&
+      typeof candidate.turn === 'number' &&
+      typeof candidate.phase === 'string' &&
+      candidate.europePrices !== null &&
+      typeof candidate.europePrices === 'object' &&
+      Array.isArray(candidate.map)
+    );
+  }
+
   private static replacer(_key: string, value: unknown): unknown {
     if (value instanceof Map) {
       return {