diff --git a/swarm-controller/src/forge.rs b/swarm-controller/src/forge.rs
index e90cdef4..74f38b25 100644
--- a/swarm-controller/src/forge.rs
+++ b/swarm-controller/src/forge.rs
@@ -610,18 +610,36 @@ impl Client {
         event: &str,
         secret: &str,
     ) -> Result<()> {
+        // ⚠️ Both non-matching arms log at a level the journal keeps, because
+        // this idempotency check fails *silently*: when the list step does
+        // not recognise a hook that is already there, the create below runs
+        // again, and that stays harmless only while the forge rejects the
+        // duplicate. A forge that accepts it leaves one extra hook per
+        // process start, each delivering on every event — and the create
+        // arm's line reads exactly like a first, correct registration.
+        //
+        // The two ways to reach a create have different causes, so they are
+        // separated: `listed=0` is a permission or scope problem, a non-zero
+        // count with no match means the recorded url is not the one compared.
         match scope.list_hook_urls(&self.api).await {
             Ok(urls) => {
                 if urls.iter().any(|u| u == target_url) {
                     tracing::debug!(%target_url, "swarm forge: webhook already registered");
                     return Ok(());
                 }
+                tracing::info!(
+                    %target_url,
+                    listed = urls.len(),
+                    "swarm forge: no listed hook matches; registering"
+                );
             }
             Err(e) => {
                 // Best-effort, same as the per-hive registrars: a forge that
                 // cannot be listed may still accept a create, and a
-                // duplicate create is folded into success below.
-                tracing::debug!(error = %e, %target_url, "swarm forge: listing hooks failed; attempting create");
+                // duplicate create is folded into success below. `warn!`
+                // because that fold is an assumption about the forge, not a
+                // guarantee — see the note above.
+                tracing::warn!(error = %e, %target_url, "swarm forge: listing hooks failed; registering blind");
             }
         }