diff --git a/app/src/androidTest/kotlin/org/libremail/notifications/NotificationIntentsTest.kt b/app/src/androidTest/kotlin/org/libremail/notifications/NotificationIntentsTest.kt
index 8a546ff..5cf8aef 100644
--- a/app/src/androidTest/kotlin/org/libremail/notifications/NotificationIntentsTest.kt
+++ b/app/src/androidTest/kotlin/org/libremail/notifications/NotificationIntentsTest.kt
@@ -13,9 +13,11 @@ import org.junit.Test
 import org.junit.runner.RunWith
 
 /**
- * Locks in the notification deep-link contract: a message id round-trips build → parse, and intents
- * for different messages are distinct under [Intent.filterEquals] — the identity PendingIntent keys
- * on — so per-message notifications never collapse onto one shared PendingIntent.
+ * Locks in the notification deep-link contract: a message id round-trips build → parse, intents for
+ * different messages are distinct under [Intent.filterEquals] — the identity PendingIntent keys on —
+ * so per-message notifications never collapse onto one shared PendingIntent, and an `ACTION_OPEN_MESSAGE`
+ * intent that does not carry this app's own sender token is ignored so a foreign caller targeting the
+ * exported activity cannot drive the reader (#307).
  */
 @RunWith(AndroidJUnit4::class)
 class NotificationIntentsTest {
@@ -25,20 +27,31 @@ class NotificationIntentsTest {
     @Test
     fun message_id_round_trips_through_the_intent() {
         val id = "imap:user@example.com:INBOX:42"
-        assertEquals(id, NotificationIntents.messageId(NotificationIntents.openMessage(context, id)))
+        assertEquals(id, NotificationIntents.messageId(context, NotificationIntents.openMessage(context, id)))
     }
 
     @Test
     fun uri_hostile_ids_round_trip() {
         val id = "imap:user@example.com:[Gmail]/All Mail:7?&%#"
-        assertEquals(id, NotificationIntents.messageId(NotificationIntents.openMessage(context, id)))
+        assertEquals(id, NotificationIntents.messageId(context, NotificationIntents.openMessage(context, id)))
     }
 
     @Test
     fun other_intents_carry_no_message_id() {
-        assertNull(NotificationIntents.messageId(null))
-        assertNull(NotificationIntents.messageId(Intent(Intent.ACTION_MAIN)))
-        assertNull(NotificationIntents.messageId(Intent(Intent.ACTION_VIEW, Uri.parse("mailto:a@b.c"))))
+        assertNull(NotificationIntents.messageId(context, null))
+        assertNull(NotificationIntents.messageId(context, Intent(Intent.ACTION_MAIN)))
+        assertNull(NotificationIntents.messageId(context, Intent(Intent.ACTION_VIEW, Uri.parse("mailto:a@b.c"))))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun open_message_intent_without_our_sender_token_is_ignored() {
+        // A hostile app can target the exported activity with our action (and a message id), but it
+        // cannot mint a PendingIntent attributed to us — so an ACTION_OPEN_MESSAGE intent that lacks our
+        // sender token must be ignored, while the genuine one (built by openMessage) still resolves.
+        val genuine = NotificationIntents.openMessage(context, "imap:a@b:INBOX:1")
+        val forged = Intent().setAction(genuine.action)
+        assertNull(NotificationIntents.messageId(context, forged))
+        assertEquals("imap:a@b:INBOX:1", NotificationIntents.messageId(context, genuine))
     }
 
     @Test
diff --git a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/MainActivity.kt b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/MainActivity.kt
index 4a09b81..c71630c 100644
--- a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/MainActivity.kt
+++ b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/MainActivity.kt
@@ -122,7 +122,7 @@ class MainActivity : FragmentActivity() {
     private fun handleIntent(intent: Intent) {
         if (!IntentHandledMarker.markIfUnhandled(intent)) return
         IntentComposeParser.parse(intent)?.let { pendingCompose.value = it }
-        NotificationIntents.messageId(intent)?.let { pendingOpenMessageId.value = it }
+        NotificationIntents.messageId(this, intent)?.let { pendingOpenMessageId.value = it }
     }
 }
 
diff --git a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/AccountThrottleGate.kt b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/AccountThrottleGate.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..003eedd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/AccountThrottleGate.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,90 @@
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
+package org.libremail.data.sync
+
+import org.libremail.reporting.AppLog
+import org.libremail.reporting.accountLogRef
+import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentHashMap
+import java.util.concurrent.ThreadLocalRandom
+import javax.inject.Inject
+import javax.inject.Singleton
+
+/**
+ * Per-account reactive throttle state for issue #360: the single, shared place that turns a classified
+ * [ThrottleSignal] (from [ThrottleClassifier]) into an exponentially-growing, jittered backoff window
+ * (via [ThrottleBackoff]) and remembers, per account, when that window elapses.
+ *
+ * **Graceful degradation, not failing hard.** Background activity (notably the full-history backfill,
+ * [MailBackfiller]) consults [remainingBackoffMillis] / [isThrottled] before touching an account and
+ * *skips* one that is still cooling down, resuming automatically once the window passes — instead of
+ * re-hitting a provider that just rate-limited or locked us (which the on-device perf drilldown proved
+ * makes throttling worse, `docs/perf/issue-125-*`).
+ *
+ * **Per-account isolation.** State is keyed by account id, so one throttled account never stalls the
+ * others; each escalates and recovers on its own.
+ *
+ * **Interactive priority.** Interactive/foreground sync feeds this gate ([onThrottle]) so background
+ * work backs off, but is itself never blocked by it — opening a message is never queued behind a
+ * backfill backoff.
+ *
+ * State lives only in-process (a `@Singleton`); a process restart resets it, which is fine — WorkManager
+ * job backoff covers the cross-process case and a fresh process simply re-probes. Every log line is
+ * PII-free: [accountLogRef] for the account, and durations/counts only.
+ */
+@Singleton
+class AccountThrottleGate internal constructor(private val nowMillis: () -> Long, private val random: () -> Double) {
+    /** Production wiring: the real wall clock and a per-thread RNG for the jitter draw. */
+    @Inject
+    constructor() : this(nowMillis = System::currentTimeMillis, random = { ThreadLocalRandom.current().nextDouble() })
+
+    /** One account's live backoff: how many consecutive throttles, until when, and the last computed wait. */
+    private data class State(val attempt: Int, val throttledUntilMillis: Long, val lastBackoffMillis: Long)
+
+    private val states = ConcurrentHashMap<String, State>()
+
+    /**
+     * Records a throttle for [accountId] and returns the resulting backoff in ms. Escalates the
+     * consecutive-attempt count (so repeats back off exponentially) and extends the account's cooldown
+     * window to `now + backoff`. Atomic per account. Logs a PII-free breadcrumb (kind, attempt, backoff).
+     */
+    fun onThrottle(accountId: String, signal: ThrottleSignal): Long {
+        val now = nowMillis()
+        val updated = states.compute(accountId) { _, previous ->
+            val attempt = (previous?.attempt ?: 0) + 1
+            val backoff = ThrottleBackoff.delayMillis(attempt, signal, random())
+            State(attempt = attempt, throttledUntilMillis = now + backoff, lastBackoffMillis = backoff)
+        }!!
+        AppLog.w(
+            TAG,
+            "throttled ${accountLogRef(accountId)} kind=${signal.kind} attempt=${updated.attempt} " +
+                "backoff=${updated.lastBackoffMillis}ms",
+        )
+        return updated.lastBackoffMillis
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Clears any backoff for [accountId] after a successful operation, so a recovered account resumes at
+     * full speed with the attempt count reset. A no-op (and silent) when the account was not throttled,
+     * so callers can invoke it on every success without log spam.
+     */
+    fun onSuccess(accountId: String) {
+        val previous = states.remove(accountId) ?: return
+        AppLog.i(TAG, "throttle cleared ${accountLogRef(accountId)} after ${previous.attempt} attempt(s)")
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Milliseconds until [accountId]'s backoff window elapses, or 0 when it is not throttled (or the
+     * window already passed). A passed window keeps its attempt count until the next [onSuccess], so a
+     * re-throttle before recovery escalates rather than restarting from the base delay.
+     */
+    fun remainingBackoffMillis(accountId: String): Long {
+        val state = states[accountId] ?: return 0L
+        return (state.throttledUntilMillis - nowMillis()).coerceAtLeast(0L)
+    }
+
+    /** True while [accountId] is inside its backoff window and background work should skip it. */
+    fun isThrottled(accountId: String): Boolean = remainingBackoffMillis(accountId) > 0L
+
+    private companion object {
+        const val TAG = "ThrottleGate"
+    }
+}
diff --git a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailBackfiller.kt b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailBackfiller.kt
index 48b2a90..e067cb7 100644
--- a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailBackfiller.kt
+++ b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailBackfiller.kt
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ package org.libremail.data.sync
 
 import android.content.Context
 import dagger.hilt.android.qualifiers.ApplicationContext
+import kotlinx.coroutines.CancellationException
 import kotlinx.coroutines.NonCancellable
 import kotlinx.coroutines.currentCoroutineContext
 import kotlinx.coroutines.delay
@@ -56,6 +57,7 @@ class MailBackfiller @Inject constructor(
     private val batteryStatusProvider: BatteryStatusProvider,
     private val mailRepository: MailRepository,
     private val maintenanceGate: MailMaintenanceGate,
+    private val throttleGate: AccountThrottleGate,
 ) {
     /** One folder's slice outcome: pages fetched, and whether an immediate follow-up slice has work to do. */
     private data class FolderResult(val batches: Int, val moreWork: Boolean)
@@ -72,6 +74,18 @@ class MailBackfiller @Inject constructor(
         var remaining = maxBatches
         var moreWork = false
         accounts@ for (account in accountDao.getAll().map { it.toDomain() }) {
+            // Graceful degradation + per-account isolation (#360): an account still inside its throttle
+            // backoff window is skipped this slice — we don't page a provider that just rate-limited or
+            // locked us (hammering it makes throttling worse, the on-device perf finding). The window
+            // elapses on its own, so a later scheduled slice resumes this account automatically. A skip
+            // deliberately does NOT set moreWork: a slice whose only outstanding work is a throttled
+            // account reports "done" so the worker's slice-chaining loop stops instead of tight-looping
+            // over the skip. Other accounts are untouched.
+            val backoffRemaining = throttleGate.remainingBackoffMillis(account.id)
+            if (backoffRemaining > 0L) {
+                AppLog.i(TAG, "backfill skip ${accountLogRef(account.id)}: throttled, remaining=${backoffRemaining}ms")
+                continue@accounts
+            }
             val params = runCatching { connectionFactory.imapParamsFor(account) }.getOrNull() ?: continue
             val policy = accountSettingsRepository.effectiveRetention(settingsRepository, account.id)
             for (folder in messageDao.syncedFolders(account.id)) {
@@ -81,10 +95,14 @@ class MailBackfiller @Inject constructor(
                     moreWork = true
                     break@accounts
                 }
-                // Per-folder failures (e.g. a transient server error) must not abort the whole slice.
-                val result = runCatching { backfillFolder(account, params, folder, policy, remaining) }
-                    .getOrElse { FolderResult(batches = 0, moreWork = true) }
+                // null == this folder throttled/locked the account (already recorded): stop paging the
+                // account for the rest of the slice — graceful degradation, not a hard failure, and not a
+                // moreWork spin against a server that just told us to slow down.
+                val result = pageFolder(account, params, folder, policy, remaining) ?: continue@accounts
                 remaining -= result.batches
+                // A page landed, so the account is healthy again — clear any lingering backoff (no-op and
+                // silent when it was never throttled).
+                if (result.batches > 0) throttleGate.onSuccess(account.id)
                 if (result.moreWork) moreWork = true
             }
         }
@@ -92,6 +110,36 @@ class MailBackfiller @Inject constructor(
         moreWork
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Pages one folder, translating a failure into the slice's control flow (issue #360). Returns the
+     * [FolderResult] on success — or, for an ordinary transient error, a zero-page result whose
+     * [FolderResult.moreWork] asks for a follow-up slice (unchanged behaviour). Returns **null** when the
+     * failure classifies as provider throttling/lockout ([ThrottleClassifier]): the backoff is recorded
+     * against the account (exponential + jitter, via [AccountThrottleGate]) and the caller stops paging
+     * this account for the rest of the slice, so we degrade gracefully instead of hammering a server that
+     * just told us to slow down (the on-device perf finding, `docs/perf/issue-125-*`). Cancellation
+     * propagates so a WorkManager stop / IDLE renewal ends the run promptly.
+     */
+    private suspend fun pageFolder(
+        account: Account,
+        params: ImapConnectionParams,
+        folder: String,
+        policy: RetentionPolicy,
+        maxBatches: Int,
+    ): FolderResult? = try {
+        backfillFolder(account, params, folder, policy, maxBatches)
+    } catch (e: CancellationException) {
+        throw e
+    } catch (e: Throwable) {
+        val signal = ThrottleClassifier.classify(e)
+        if (signal == null) {
+            FolderResult(batches = 0, moreWork = true)
+        } else {
+            throttleGate.onThrottle(account.id, signal)
+            null
+        }
+    }
+
     private suspend fun backfillFolder(
         account: Account,
         params: ImapConnectionParams,
diff --git a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncer.kt b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncer.kt
index 1d8df94..e2f0814 100644
--- a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncer.kt
+++ b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncer.kt
@@ -40,6 +40,7 @@ class MailSyncer @Inject constructor(
     private val batteryStatusProvider: BatteryStatusProvider,
     private val notifier: MailNotifier,
     private val mailRepository: MailRepository,
+    private val throttleGate: AccountThrottleGate,
 ) : Syncer {
     // Serializes all syncing: syncAll/syncAccount/syncFolder are invoked concurrently by the periodic
     // worker, pull-to-refresh, one-shot syncs, folder opens, and one IDLE watcher per account. Without
@@ -156,6 +157,11 @@ class MailSyncer @Inject constructor(
             val folderLabel = logSafeFolderLabel(folder)
             AppLog.d(TAG, "sync ${accountLogRef(account.id)} folder=$folderLabel fetched=${fetched.size}")
             fetched.size
+        }.onFailure { error ->
+            // Interactive priority (#360): a foreground sync that hits provider throttling records it so
+            // the background backfill backs this account off — but the interactive sync itself is never
+            // blocked by the gate, so opening/refreshing mail is never queued behind a backfill backoff.
+            ThrottleClassifier.classify(error)?.let { throttleGate.onThrottle(account.id, it) }
         }
 
     /**
diff --git a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleBackoff.kt b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleBackoff.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8b309ec
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleBackoff.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
+package org.libremail.data.sync
+
+import kotlin.math.min
+
+/**
+ * The pure backoff schedule for issue #360: given how many times an account has been throttled in a
+ * row ([attempt], 1-based) and the [ThrottleSignal], returns how long to wait before touching that
+ * account again. Exponential in the attempt, capped at a bounded maximum, with **equal jitter** so a
+ * fleet of clients throttled at once don't retry in lockstep and re-trip the limit.
+ *
+ * Kept side-effect-free and clock-free (the caller supplies the jitter draw) so the whole schedule is
+ * deterministically unit-testable; [AccountThrottleGate] owns the per-account state, clock, and logging.
+ */
+object ThrottleBackoff {
+
+    /** First-attempt wait for a rate limit (30s); doubles per repeat up to [RATE_LIMIT_MAX_MS]. */
+    const val RATE_LIMIT_BASE_MS = 30_000L
+
+    /** Ceiling for a rate-limit backoff (15 min) — long enough to clear a clamp, short enough to recover. */
+    const val RATE_LIMIT_MAX_MS = 15 * 60_000L
+
+    /**
+     * First-attempt wait for a lockout (1h) — sized to Yahoo's documented ~1-hour auth lock, the case
+     * that motivated the circuit-breaker lever in issue #360.
+     */
+    const val LOCKOUT_BASE_MS = 60 * 60_000L
+
+    /** Ceiling for a lockout backoff (4h) — a repeatedly re-locked account waits out ever longer windows. */
+    const val LOCKOUT_MAX_MS = 4 * 60 * 60_000L
+
+    /** Caps the exponential shift so `base shl (attempt-1)` can never overflow before the min-cap applies. */
+    private const val MAX_SHIFT = 16
+
+    /**
+     * Backoff in milliseconds for the given 1-based [attempt] and [signal]. The uncapped target is
+     * `base * 2^(attempt-1)`, clamped to the kind's maximum; **equal jitter** then keeps half of that
+     * as a floor and spreads the other half by [random] (expected in `[0.0, 1.0)`), so the result lies
+     * in `[capped/2, capped]`. Finally the provider's own [ThrottleSignal.retryAfterMillis], when
+     * present, is honored as a lower bound — we never wait less than a server explicitly asked for.
+     */
+    fun delayMillis(attempt: Int, signal: ThrottleSignal, random: Double): Long {
+        require(attempt >= 1) { "attempt must be >= 1" }
+        val base: Long
+        val cap: Long
+        when (signal.kind) {
+            ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT -> {
+                base = RATE_LIMIT_BASE_MS
+                cap = RATE_LIMIT_MAX_MS
+            }
+            ThrottleKind.LOCKOUT -> {
+                base = LOCKOUT_BASE_MS
+                cap = LOCKOUT_MAX_MS
+            }
+        }
+        val shift = min(attempt - 1, MAX_SHIFT)
+        val exponential = base shl shift
+        // shl can overflow to <= 0 for a pathological attempt; treat that as "past the cap".
+        val capped = if (exponential in 1..cap) exponential else cap
+        val half = capped / 2
+        val jitter = (random.coerceIn(0.0, 1.0) * half).toLong()
+        val backoff = half + jitter
+        val floor = signal.retryAfterMillis ?: 0L
+        return maxOf(backoff, floor)
+    }
+}
diff --git a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleClassifier.kt b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleClassifier.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c10535a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleClassifier.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,104 @@
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
+package org.libremail.data.sync
+
+/**
+ * Classifies a mail-layer failure as a **provider throttling / lockout** signal, distinct from an
+ * ordinary transient error (a dropped socket, a timeout, a "message not found"). This is the shared,
+ * provider-aware detection half of issue #360's reactive backoff layer: [AccountThrottleGate] turns a
+ * non-null [ThrottleSignal] into an exponential, jittered per-account backoff so the app degrades
+ * gracefully instead of hammering a server that just asked it to slow down (which — per the on-device
+ * perf finding, `docs/perf/issue-125-*` — makes the throttle worse and can trip a lasting lockout).
+ *
+ * Matching is by **message text** across the whole cause chain (case-insensitive), so it works for any
+ * transport (IMAP/SMTP over Jakarta Mail, or a Graph HTTP error surfaced as an exception) without
+ * coupling to a specific exception type. It is deliberately **conservative**: an ordinary auth failure
+ * (wrong password) or the separately-handled "IMAP is disabled" state (issue #390) must NOT be read as
+ * throttling — misclassifying them would make the app back off for up to hours on a permanent error.
+ * A false negative merely falls back to the existing transient-error handling; a false positive would
+ * silently stall an account, so the patterns anchor on explicit throttle/lock wording.
+ */
+object ThrottleClassifier {
+
+    /** HTTP 429 Too Many Requests — the canonical rate-limit status (e.g. Microsoft Graph). */
+    const val HTTP_TOO_MANY_REQUESTS = 429
+
+    /** HTTP 503 Service Unavailable — a load-shed / backoff signal, usually with a `Retry-After`. */
+    const val HTTP_SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE = 503
+
+    /**
+     * Classifies [error] (and its transitive causes) into a [ThrottleSignal], or null when it is not a
+     * throttling/lockout response. [ThrottleKind.LOCKOUT] is tested first so a message naming both a
+     * lock and a rate limit takes the longer, safer backoff.
+     */
+    fun classify(error: Throwable): ThrottleSignal? {
+        val text = causeChain(error)
+            .mapNotNull { it.message }
+            .joinToString(separator = " | ")
+            .lowercase()
+        if (text.isBlank()) return null
+        if (LOCKOUT_PATTERNS.any { it.containsMatchIn(text) }) return ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.LOCKOUT)
+        if (RATE_LIMIT_PATTERNS.any { it.containsMatchIn(text) }) return ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT)
+        return null
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Classifies an HTTP response by status code, honoring a parsed `Retry-After` when the caller has
+     * one (Microsoft Graph returns it on a 429). The structured entry point for a REST transport that
+     * already has the status + header in hand, complementing the text-based [classify] used by the
+     * IMAP/SMTP paths. Only the throttling statuses map to a signal; everything else is null.
+     */
+    fun classifyHttpStatus(status: Int, retryAfterMillis: Long? = null): ThrottleSignal? = when (status) {
+        HTTP_TOO_MANY_REQUESTS, HTTP_SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE ->
+            ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, retryAfterMillis)
+        else -> null
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * The exception and its transitive causes, in order, guarding against a self-referential or cyclic
+     * cause chain (identity-based visited check — [Throwable] does not override `equals`). Mirrors the
+     * same-shaped walk in [org.libremail.mail.ImapAuthError].
+     */
+    private fun causeChain(error: Throwable): List<Throwable> {
+        val seen = mutableListOf<Throwable>()
+        var current: Throwable? = error
+        while (current != null && seen.none { it === current }) {
+            seen.add(current)
+            current = current.cause
+        }
+        return seen
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Lockout wording (matched against a lowercased message). Anchored on lock/suspend/too-many-logins
+     * so a plain "AUTHENTICATE failed" wrong-password message never matches, and "IMAP is disabled"
+     * (issue #390's actionable state) is deliberately excluded — that is not a throttle.
+     */
+    private val LOCKOUT_PATTERNS = listOf(
+        // "account temporarily locked", "your account has been locked", "account locked", "lockout".
+        Regex("""lock(ed|out)"""),
+        // "temporarily suspended", "account suspended".
+        Regex("""suspend(ed)?"""),
+        // Yahoo-style repeated-login lock precursor: "too many login attempts", "too many failed logins".
+        Regex("""too many (failed )?log(in|ins)"""),
+    )
+
+    /**
+     * Rate-limit wording (matched against a lowercased message): explicit IMAP/SMTP throttle NOs, the
+     * RFC 5530 `[LIMIT]` / `[UNAVAILABLE]` response codes, connection/request caps, and an HTTP 429 that
+     * surfaced only as text. Each anchors on a rate/throttle phrase, never a bare number.
+     */
+    private val RATE_LIMIT_PATTERNS = listOf(
+        Regex("""throttl"""), // throttled / throttling / [THROTTLED]
+        Regex("""too many requests"""),
+        Regex("""too many (simultaneous|concurrent) connections"""),
+        Regex("""too many connections"""),
+        Regex("""too many messages"""),
+        Regex("""rate[ -]?limit"""),
+        Regex("""\[limit\]"""),
+        Regex("""\[unavailable\]"""),
+        Regex("""temporarily unavailable"""),
+        Regex("""service (not|un)available"""),
+        Regex("""http 429"""),
+        Regex("""429 too many"""),
+    )
+}
diff --git a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleSignal.kt b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleSignal.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f586b08
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleSignal.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
+package org.libremail.data.sync
+
+/**
+ * How severe a provider's throttling response is, which sets how long the reactive backoff waits
+ * before the offending activity may touch that account again (issue #360).
+ */
+enum class ThrottleKind {
+    /**
+     * A transient rate / connection / bandwidth limit — an IMAP `[THROTTLED]` / "Too many requests"
+     * NO, an HTTP 429, or "too many simultaneous connections". Recoverable after a short, exponentially
+     * growing backoff: the provider is asking us to slow down, not shutting us out.
+     */
+    RATE_LIMIT,
+
+    /**
+     * A provider lockout — e.g. Yahoo's ~1-hour auth lock after repeated logins, or an explicit
+     * "account temporarily locked / suspended". A hard signal to stop retrying for a long window; a
+     * tight retry loop here only prolongs (or re-arms) the lock.
+     */
+    LOCKOUT,
+}
+
+/**
+ * A classified provider throttling response — the output of [ThrottleClassifier] and the input to
+ * [AccountThrottleGate]. Deliberately carries no PII (no host, address, or server body): only the
+ * [kind] and, when the provider gave a machine-readable minimum wait (e.g. an HTTP `Retry-After`
+ * header — [retryAfterMillis]), a number of milliseconds. IMAP/SMTP throttling rarely carries a
+ * `Retry-After`, so [retryAfterMillis] is usually null and the exponential schedule alone applies.
+ */
+data class ThrottleSignal(
+    val kind: ThrottleKind,
+    /** Provider-suggested minimum wait in ms (e.g. Graph `Retry-After`), or null when none was given. */
+    val retryAfterMillis: Long? = null,
+)
diff --git a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/notifications/NotificationIntents.kt b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/notifications/NotificationIntents.kt
index a27a40b..3c77c1e 100644
--- a/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/notifications/NotificationIntents.kt
+++ b/app/src/main/kotlin/org/libremail/notifications/NotificationIntents.kt
@@ -1,10 +1,13 @@
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
 package org.libremail.notifications
 
+import android.app.PendingIntent
 import android.content.Context
 import android.content.Intent
 import android.net.Uri
+import androidx.core.content.IntentCompat
 import org.libremail.MainActivity
+import org.libremail.reporting.AppLog
 
 /**
  * Builds and parses the intent behind a tapped per-message new-mail notification, keeping both sides
@@ -14,20 +17,55 @@ import org.libremail.MainActivity
  * distinct URI every message's notification would collapse onto one FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT PendingIntent
  * and always open the most-recently-notified message. The intent is explicit (component set), so the
  * private scheme needs no manifest intent-filter and adds no exported surface.
+ *
+ * [MainActivity] is nonetheless `exported="true"` (launcher / mailto: / share), so another app could
+ * still target it with an explicit `ACTION_OPEN_MESSAGE` intent and drive the reader to an arbitrary
+ * cached message id (#307). To honour only this app's own notification taps, [openMessage] attaches an
+ * unforgeable **sender token** — a PendingIntent whose creator package is stamped by the system — and
+ * [messageId] yields the id only when that token was created by us. A foreign caller carries no token
+ * (or one attributed to its own package), so its intent is ignored.
  */
 object NotificationIntents {
 
+    private const val TAG = "NotificationIntents"
     private const val ACTION_OPEN_MESSAGE = "org.libremail.action.OPEN_MESSAGE"
+    private const val ACTION_SENDER_TOKEN = "org.libremail.action.SENDER_TOKEN"
     private const val EXTRA_MESSAGE_ID = "org.libremail.extra.MESSAGE_ID"
+    private const val EXTRA_SENDER_TOKEN = "org.libremail.extra.SENDER_TOKEN"
 
     fun openMessage(context: Context, messageId: String): Intent = Intent(context, MainActivity::class.java).apply {
         action = ACTION_OPEN_MESSAGE
         data = Uri.parse("libremail://message/${Uri.encode(messageId)}")
         putExtra(EXTRA_MESSAGE_ID, messageId)
+        putExtra(EXTRA_SENDER_TOKEN, senderToken(context))
         flags = Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_SINGLE_TOP or Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_CLEAR_TOP
     }
 
-    /** The tapped message's id, or null for any other intent (launcher, mailto:, share, …). */
-    fun messageId(intent: Intent?): String? =
-        intent?.takeIf { it.action == ACTION_OPEN_MESSAGE }?.getStringExtra(EXTRA_MESSAGE_ID)
+    /**
+     * The tapped message's id, or null for any other intent (launcher, mailto:, share, …). Also null
+     * for an `ACTION_OPEN_MESSAGE` intent that did not originate from this app's own notification —
+     * i.e. one whose [senderToken] is missing or was minted by another package — so a foreign caller
+     * targeting the exported [MainActivity] can never drive the reader (#307).
+     */
+    fun messageId(context: Context, intent: Intent?): String? {
+        if (intent?.action != ACTION_OPEN_MESSAGE) return null
+        val token = IntentCompat.getParcelableExtra(intent, EXTRA_SENDER_TOKEN, PendingIntent::class.java)
+        if (token?.creatorPackage != context.packageName) {
+            AppLog.w(TAG, "Ignoring ACTION_OPEN_MESSAGE intent lacking this app's sender token")
+            return null
+        }
+        return intent.getStringExtra(EXTRA_MESSAGE_ID)
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * An immutable PendingIntent used purely as unforgeable proof of origin: only this app can mint one
+     * whose [PendingIntent.getCreatorPackage] is our package. It is never sent — a package-scoped
+     * broadcast to a receiver we don't register — so firing it (which never happens) is a no-op.
+     */
+    private fun senderToken(context: Context): PendingIntent = PendingIntent.getBroadcast(
+        context,
+        0,
+        Intent(ACTION_SENDER_TOKEN).setPackage(context.packageName),
+        PendingIntent.FLAG_IMMUTABLE or PendingIntent.FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT,
+    )
 }
diff --git a/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/AccountThrottleGateTest.kt b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/AccountThrottleGateTest.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..940f6ad
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/AccountThrottleGateTest.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,140 @@
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
+package org.libremail.data.sync
+
+import android.util.Log
+import io.mockk.every
+import io.mockk.mockkStatic
+import io.mockk.unmockkAll
+import kotlinx.coroutines.ExperimentalCoroutinesApi
+import kotlinx.coroutines.test.advanceTimeBy
+import kotlinx.coroutines.test.runTest
+import org.junit.After
+import org.junit.Before
+import org.junit.Test
+import org.libremail.reporting.AppLog
+import org.libremail.reporting.RingLogBuffer
+import kotlin.test.assertEquals
+import kotlin.test.assertFalse
+import kotlin.test.assertTrue
+
+/**
+ * [AccountThrottleGate] must escalate a throttled account's backoff, isolate accounts from one
+ * another, reset on success, expose an accurate remaining window (proven against coroutines-test
+ * virtual time), and log only PII-free breadcrumbs.
+ */
+@OptIn(ExperimentalCoroutinesApi::class)
+class AccountThrottleGateTest {
+
+    private val logBuffer = RingLogBuffer()
+
+    /** A manual virtual clock for the non-timing tests; [gate] reads it live, so tests advance it by hand. */
+    private var now = 0L
+
+    /** random = 0.0 makes the equal-jitter draw deterministic (always the lower bound). */
+    private fun gate(random: () -> Double = { 0.0 }) = AccountThrottleGate(nowMillis = { now }, random = random)
+
+    @Before
+    fun setUp() {
+        // AppLog forwards to android.util.Log, a throwing no-op stub under plain JVM unit tests.
+        mockkStatic(Log::class)
+        every { Log.i(any(), any()) } returns 0
+        every { Log.w(any<String>(), any<String>()) } returns 0
+        AppLog.install(logBuffer)
+    }
+
+    @After
+    fun tearDown() = unmockkAll()
+
+    @Test
+    fun `onThrottle marks the account throttled and returns the backoff`() {
+        val gate = gate()
+
+        val backoff = gate.onThrottle("acct", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT))
+
+        assertTrue(backoff > 0L)
+        assertTrue(gate.isThrottled("acct"))
+        assertEquals(backoff, gate.remainingBackoffMillis("acct"))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `repeated throttles escalate the backoff window`() {
+        val gate = gate()
+
+        val first = gate.onThrottle("acct", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT))
+        val second = gate.onThrottle("acct", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT))
+
+        assertTrue(second > first, "a consecutive throttle must back off longer ($second !> $first)")
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `onSuccess clears the backoff and resets the attempt count`() {
+        val gate = gate()
+
+        val first = gate.onThrottle("acct", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT))
+        gate.onThrottle("acct", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT)) // escalate to attempt 2
+        gate.onSuccess("acct")
+
+        assertFalse(gate.isThrottled("acct"))
+        // A fresh throttle after recovery starts back at the base (attempt 1) delay.
+        assertEquals(first, gate.onThrottle("acct", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT)))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a throttled account never stalls a healthy one`() {
+        val gate = gate()
+
+        gate.onThrottle("throttled", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.LOCKOUT))
+
+        assertTrue(gate.isThrottled("throttled"))
+        assertFalse(gate.isThrottled("healthy"))
+        assertEquals(0L, gate.remainingBackoffMillis("healthy"))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `an elapsed window stops throttling but still escalates a re-throttle`() {
+        val gate = gate()
+
+        val first = gate.onThrottle("acct", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT))
+        now += first // the window elapses
+        assertFalse(gate.isThrottled("acct"), "the account is free once its window passes")
+
+        // Re-throttling before any success keeps the attempt count — it escalates, not restarts.
+        val next = gate.onThrottle("acct", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT))
+        assertTrue(next > first)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `the throttle window clears exactly when the backoff elapses`() = runTest {
+        val gate = AccountThrottleGate(nowMillis = { testScheduler.currentTime }, random = { 0.0 })
+
+        val backoff = gate.onThrottle("acct", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT))
+        assertTrue(gate.isThrottled("acct"))
+
+        advanceTimeBy(backoff - 1)
+        assertTrue(gate.isThrottled("acct"), "still throttled just before the window elapses")
+
+        advanceTimeBy(1)
+        assertFalse(gate.isThrottled("acct"), "cleared the instant the backoff elapses")
+        assertEquals(0L, gate.remainingBackoffMillis("acct"))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `throttle and clear log PII-free breadcrumbs`() {
+        val gate = gate()
+
+        gate.onThrottle("outlook:user@example.org", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.LOCKOUT))
+        gate.onSuccess("outlook:user@example.org")
+
+        val messages = logBuffer.snapshot().map { it.message }
+        assertTrue(messages.any { it.startsWith("throttled outlook:") && it.contains("kind=LOCKOUT") })
+        assertTrue(messages.any { it.startsWith("throttle cleared outlook:") })
+        messages.forEach { assertFalse(it.contains("user@example.org"), it) }
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `onSuccess on a healthy account is silent`() {
+        gate().onSuccess("acct")
+
+        assertTrue(logBuffer.snapshot().isEmpty())
+    }
+}
diff --git a/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailBackfillerTest.kt b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailBackfillerTest.kt
index 670080d..d43d195 100644
--- a/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailBackfillerTest.kt
+++ b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailBackfillerTest.kt
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ import io.mockk.mockkStatic
 import io.mockk.unmockkAll
 import jakarta.mail.Folder
 import jakarta.mail.Message
+import jakarta.mail.MessagingException
 import jakarta.mail.Session
 import jakarta.mail.internet.InternetAddress
 import jakarta.mail.internet.MimeMessage
@@ -475,6 +476,54 @@ class MailBackfillerTest {
         )
     }
 
+    // --- issue #360: throttling backoff + graceful degradation ----------------------------------
+
+    /**
+     * When the server throttles the backfill (a `[THROTTLED]` / "too many connections" NO), the slice
+     * must record a backoff for that account and STOP paging it — not retry the page in a tight loop
+     * (which is exactly what makes provider throttling worse, `docs/perf/issue-125-*`). It also must not
+     * report more-work, so [BackfillWorker]'s slice-chaining loop stops rather than spinning.
+     */
+    @Test
+    fun `a throttling server pauses that account's backfill instead of hammering it`() = runTest {
+        cached += fetchedMessage(uid = "60").toEntity("acct", "INBOX")
+        var calls = 0
+        val imapClient = mockk<ImapClient>()
+        coEvery { imapClient.fetchOlderThan(any(), any(), any(), any()) } answers {
+            calls++
+            throw MessagingException("A3 NO [THROTTLED] Too many simultaneous connections")
+        }
+        val gate = AccountThrottleGate()
+
+        val moreWork = backfiller(AccountSettings("acct"), imapClient = imapClient, throttleGate = gate).runBackfill()
+
+        assertFalse(moreWork, "a throttled account must not drive an immediate re-slice (no tight loop)")
+        assertTrue(gate.isThrottled("acct"), "the account is now backing off")
+        assertEquals(1, calls, "paging stops at the first throttle, it is not retried in a tight loop")
+        assertTrue(
+            logBuffer.snapshot().any { it.message.startsWith("throttled acct:") },
+            "a PII-free throttle breadcrumb is recorded",
+        )
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * An account still inside its backoff window is skipped entirely — no server call at all — so a
+     * provider we were just throttled by is left alone until the window elapses (graceful degradation +
+     * per-account isolation).
+     */
+    @Test
+    fun `an account inside its backoff window is skipped, not paged`() = runTest {
+        cached += fetchedMessage(uid = "60").toEntity("acct", "INBOX")
+        val imapClient = mockk<ImapClient>(relaxed = true)
+        val gate = AccountThrottleGate().apply { onThrottle("acct", ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT)) }
+
+        val moreWork = backfiller(AccountSettings("acct"), imapClient = imapClient, throttleGate = gate).runBackfill()
+
+        assertFalse(moreWork, "a slice whose only account is throttled reports done, not more-work")
+        coVerify(exactly = 0) { imapClient.fetchOlderThan(any(), any(), any(), any()) }
+        assertTrue(logBuffer.snapshot().any { it.message.startsWith("backfill skip acct:") })
+    }
+
     // --- issue #329: AppLog breadcrumbs ---------------------------------------------------------
 
     @Test
@@ -553,6 +602,7 @@ class MailBackfillerTest {
         fetchPolicy: FetchPolicy = FetchPolicy.ON_DEMAND,
         battery: BatteryStatus = BatteryStatus(percent = 100, isCharging = false),
         imapClient: ImapClient = client,
+        throttleGate: AccountThrottleGate = AccountThrottleGate(),
     ): MailBackfiller {
         val accountDao = mockk<AccountDao>()
         coEvery { accountDao.getAll() } returns listOf(accountEntity)
@@ -608,6 +658,7 @@ class MailBackfillerTest {
             batteryStatusProvider = batteryStatusProvider,
             mailRepository = mailRepository,
             maintenanceGate = MailMaintenanceGate(),
+            throttleGate = throttleGate,
         ).also {
             lastMessageDao = messageDao
             lastMailRepository = mailRepository
diff --git a/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailMaintenanceGateTest.kt b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailMaintenanceGateTest.kt
index 7732a0e..dbe5e91 100644
--- a/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailMaintenanceGateTest.kt
+++ b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailMaintenanceGateTest.kt
@@ -200,6 +200,7 @@ class MailMaintenanceGateTest {
             },
             mailRepository = mockk(relaxed = true),
             maintenanceGate = gate,
+            throttleGate = AccountThrottleGate(),
         )
     }
 
diff --git a/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncConcurrencyTest.kt b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncConcurrencyTest.kt
index 27af4f0..1f2ebd7 100644
--- a/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncConcurrencyTest.kt
+++ b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncConcurrencyTest.kt
@@ -330,6 +330,7 @@ class MailSyncConcurrencyTest {
             batteryStatusProvider = fullBattery(),
             notifier = mockk(relaxed = true),
             mailRepository = mockk(relaxed = true),
+            throttleGate = AccountThrottleGate(),
         )
     }
 
@@ -359,6 +360,7 @@ class MailSyncConcurrencyTest {
             batteryStatusProvider = fullBattery(),
             mailRepository = mockk(relaxed = true),
             maintenanceGate = MailMaintenanceGate(),
+            throttleGate = AccountThrottleGate(),
         )
     }
 
diff --git a/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncerTest.kt b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncerTest.kt
index 5e5ec17..1f5e611 100644
--- a/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncerTest.kt
+++ b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/MailSyncerTest.kt
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ import io.mockk.every
 import io.mockk.mockk
 import io.mockk.mockkStatic
 import io.mockk.unmockkAll
+import jakarta.mail.MessagingException
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.flowOf
 import kotlinx.coroutines.test.runTest
 import org.junit.After
@@ -93,6 +94,7 @@ class MailSyncerTest {
         globalSettings: AppSettings = AppSettings(),
         battery: BatteryStatus = BatteryStatus(percent = 100, isCharging = false),
         fetched: List<FetchedMessage> = emptyList(),
+        throttleGate: AccountThrottleGate = AccountThrottleGate(),
     ): MailSyncer {
         val accountDao = mockk<AccountDao>()
         coEvery { accountDao.getById("acct") } returns account
@@ -121,6 +123,7 @@ class MailSyncerTest {
             batteryStatusProvider = batteryProvider(battery),
             notifier = mockk<MailNotifier>(relaxed = true),
             mailRepository = mailRepository,
+            throttleGate = throttleGate,
         )
     }
 
@@ -336,6 +339,7 @@ class MailSyncerTest {
             batteryStatusProvider = batteryProvider(BatteryStatus(percent = 100, isCharging = false)),
             notifier = notifier,
             mailRepository = mockk(relaxed = true),
+            throttleGate = AccountThrottleGate(),
         )
     }
 
@@ -418,6 +422,7 @@ class MailSyncerTest {
             batteryStatusProvider = batteryProvider(BatteryStatus(percent = 100, isCharging = false)),
             notifier = mockk(relaxed = true),
             mailRepository = mockk(relaxed = true),
+            throttleGate = AccountThrottleGate(),
         )
     }
 
@@ -485,6 +490,38 @@ class MailSyncerTest {
         logBuffer.snapshot().forEach { assertNoPii(it.message) }
     }
 
+    // --- issue #360: foreground sync feeds the throttle gate (interactive priority) -------------
+
+    /**
+     * A foreground sync that hits provider throttling records a per-account backoff (so the background
+     * backfill defers that account) but is itself never blocked — the failure still surfaces to the
+     * caller. This is the interactive-priority half of #360: interactive work informs the gate, it is
+     * never gated by it.
+     */
+    @Test
+    fun `a foreground sync hitting throttling records a backoff without being blocked`() = runTest {
+        val gate = AccountThrottleGate()
+        val syncer = syncer(FetchPolicy.ON_DEMAND, mockk(relaxed = true), throttleGate = gate)
+        coEvery { lastImapClient.fetchRecent(any(), any(), any()) } throws
+            MessagingException("A2 NO [THROTTLED] Too many requests")
+
+        val result = syncer.syncFolder("acct", "INBOX")
+
+        assertTrue(result.isFailure, "the throttle failure still surfaces to the caller")
+        assertTrue(gate.isThrottled("acct"), "and it records a backoff so background backfill defers")
+    }
+
+    /** An ordinary (non-throttle) sync failure must NOT arm a backoff. */
+    @Test
+    fun `a foreground sync failing on an ordinary error does not record a backoff`() = runTest {
+        val gate = AccountThrottleGate()
+        val syncer = syncer(FetchPolicy.ON_DEMAND, mockk(relaxed = true), throttleGate = gate)
+        coEvery { lastImapClient.fetchRecent(any(), any(), any()) } throws IOException("Connection reset")
+
+        assertTrue(syncer.syncFolder("acct", "INBOX").isFailure)
+        assertFalse(gate.isThrottled("acct"))
+    }
+
     /** No test fixture's email address or host may ever reach a log line — the hard PII rule. */
     private fun assertNoPii(message: String) {
         assertFalse(message.contains("@example.org"), message)
diff --git a/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleBackoffTest.kt b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleBackoffTest.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..de120c0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleBackoffTest.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,78 @@
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
+package org.libremail.data.sync
+
+import org.junit.Test
+import kotlin.test.assertEquals
+import kotlin.test.assertFailsWith
+import kotlin.test.assertTrue
+
+/**
+ * The pure backoff schedule (issue #360): exponential in the consecutive-attempt count, capped at a
+ * bounded maximum, spread by equal jitter into `[capped/2, capped]`, and never shorter than a
+ * provider-supplied `Retry-After`.
+ */
+class ThrottleBackoffTest {
+
+    private val rateLimit = ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT)
+    private val lockout = ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.LOCKOUT)
+
+    /** random = 0.0 selects the lower jitter bound (capped/2); random = 1.0 selects the upper (capped). */
+    private fun low(attempt: Int, signal: ThrottleSignal) = ThrottleBackoff.delayMillis(attempt, signal, random = 0.0)
+    private fun high(attempt: Int, signal: ThrottleSignal) = ThrottleBackoff.delayMillis(attempt, signal, random = 1.0)
+
+    @Test
+    fun `rate-limit backoff doubles per attempt at the lower jitter bound`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleBackoff.RATE_LIMIT_BASE_MS / 2, low(1, rateLimit))
+        assertEquals(ThrottleBackoff.RATE_LIMIT_BASE_MS, low(2, rateLimit))
+        assertEquals(ThrottleBackoff.RATE_LIMIT_BASE_MS * 2, low(3, rateLimit))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `the upper jitter bound of attempt 1 is the base delay`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleBackoff.RATE_LIMIT_BASE_MS, high(1, rateLimit))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `jitter keeps every draw within the exponential half-window`() {
+        // Attempt 2's capped target is 2*base; equal jitter must land in [base, 2*base] for any draw.
+        val lower = ThrottleBackoff.RATE_LIMIT_BASE_MS
+        val upper = ThrottleBackoff.RATE_LIMIT_BASE_MS * 2
+        for (thousandths in 0..1000) {
+            val delay = ThrottleBackoff.delayMillis(attempt = 2, rateLimit, random = thousandths / 1000.0)
+            assertTrue(delay in lower..upper, "draw $thousandths gave $delay, outside [$lower,$upper]")
+        }
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a large attempt is capped at the rate-limit maximum`() {
+        // 2^19 * base overflows the cap many times over; the max must hold for both jitter bounds.
+        assertEquals(ThrottleBackoff.RATE_LIMIT_MAX_MS / 2, low(20, rateLimit))
+        assertEquals(ThrottleBackoff.RATE_LIMIT_MAX_MS, high(20, rateLimit))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a lockout starts at a long window and caps higher than a rate limit`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleBackoff.LOCKOUT_BASE_MS / 2, low(1, lockout))
+        assertEquals(ThrottleBackoff.LOCKOUT_BASE_MS, high(1, lockout))
+        assertEquals(ThrottleBackoff.LOCKOUT_MAX_MS, high(20, lockout))
+        assertTrue(ThrottleBackoff.LOCKOUT_MAX_MS > ThrottleBackoff.RATE_LIMIT_MAX_MS)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a retry-after longer than the computed delay is honored as a floor`() {
+        val retryAfter = ThrottleBackoff.RATE_LIMIT_MAX_MS * 4
+        val signal = ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, retryAfterMillis = retryAfter)
+        assertEquals(retryAfter, ThrottleBackoff.delayMillis(attempt = 1, signal, random = 1.0))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a retry-after shorter than the computed delay does not shorten the backoff`() {
+        val signal = ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, retryAfterMillis = 1L)
+        assertEquals(ThrottleBackoff.RATE_LIMIT_BASE_MS / 2, ThrottleBackoff.delayMillis(1, signal, random = 0.0))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `attempt below 1 is rejected`() {
+        assertFailsWith<IllegalArgumentException> { ThrottleBackoff.delayMillis(0, rateLimit, random = 0.0) }
+    }
+}
diff --git a/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleClassifierTest.kt b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleClassifierTest.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3de2df7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/src/test/kotlin/org/libremail/data/sync/ThrottleClassifierTest.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,151 @@
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
+package org.libremail.data.sync
+
+import org.junit.Test
+import java.io.IOException
+import kotlin.test.assertEquals
+import kotlin.test.assertNull
+
+/**
+ * [ThrottleClassifier] must recognize provider throttling / lockout wording across IMAP, SMTP, and
+ * HTTP — and, just as importantly, must NOT flag an ordinary auth failure, the "IMAP disabled" state
+ * (issue #390), or a plain network error, since a false positive would silently stall an account for
+ * up to hours.
+ */
+class ThrottleClassifierTest {
+
+    private fun classify(message: String?) = ThrottleClassifier.classify(RuntimeException(message))
+
+    // --- rate-limit positives -------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+    @Test
+    fun `gmail too-many-simultaneous-connections is a rate limit`() {
+        assertEquals(
+            ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT),
+            classify("A3 NO [ALERT] Too many simultaneous connections. (Failure)"),
+        )
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `an imap THROTTLED response code is a rate limit`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, classify("* BYE [THROTTLED] slow down")?.kind)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `too many requests is a rate limit`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, classify("Server said: Too Many Requests")?.kind)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `an rfc5530 UNAVAILABLE response code is a rate limit`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, classify("NO [UNAVAILABLE] System temporarily overloaded")?.kind)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `an rfc5530 LIMIT response code is a rate limit`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, classify("NO [LIMIT] too much")?.kind)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `an smtp too-many-messages rejection is a rate limit`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, classify("421 4.7.0 Too many messages, try later")?.kind)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `an http 429 that surfaced as text is a rate limit`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, classify("Graph sendMail failed (HTTP 429): quota")?.kind)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `an explicit rate-limit phrase is a rate limit`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, classify("Request was rate-limited by the provider")?.kind)
+    }
+
+    // --- lockout positives ----------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a temporarily-locked account is a lockout`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.LOCKOUT, classify("Your account has been temporarily locked")?.kind)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a suspended account is a lockout`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.LOCKOUT, classify("This account is temporarily suspended")?.kind)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `too many login attempts is a lockout`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.LOCKOUT, classify("Login failed: too many login attempts")?.kind)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a message naming both a lock and a rate limit prefers the longer lockout`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.LOCKOUT, classify("Too many requests; account locked")?.kind)
+    }
+
+    // --- negatives (must NOT be throttling) -----------------------------------------------------
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a wrong-password auth failure is not throttling`() {
+        assertNull(classify("A2 NO [AUTHENTICATIONFAILED] Invalid credentials (Failure)"))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `the imap-disabled state is not throttling`() {
+        // Issue #390's actionable "turn on IMAP" case must stay distinct from a throttle/lockout.
+        assertNull(classify("Your account is not enabled for IMAP use. Please enable IMAP."))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `an ordinary network error is not throttling`() {
+        assertNull(ThrottleClassifier.classify(IOException("Connection refused")))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a not-found error is not throttling`() {
+        assertNull(classify("Message 42 not found"))
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a null or blank message is not throttling`() {
+        assertNull(classify(null))
+        assertNull(classify("   "))
+    }
+
+    // --- cause chain ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+    @Test
+    fun `throttle wording nested in a cause is still classified`() {
+        val wrapped = RuntimeException("sync failed", IOException("[THROTTLED] too many requests"))
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, ThrottleClassifier.classify(wrapped)?.kind)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a cyclic cause chain terminates and classifies`() {
+        val a = RuntimeException("Too many requests")
+        val b = RuntimeException("wrapper", a)
+        a.initCause(b) // cycle: a -> b -> a
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, ThrottleClassifier.classify(b)?.kind)
+    }
+
+    // --- http status entry point ----------------------------------------------------------------
+
+    @Test
+    fun `http 429 maps to a rate limit and honors a parsed retry-after`() {
+        assertEquals(
+            ThrottleSignal(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, retryAfterMillis = 120_000L),
+            ThrottleClassifier.classifyHttpStatus(429, retryAfterMillis = 120_000L),
+        )
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `http 503 maps to a rate limit`() {
+        assertEquals(ThrottleKind.RATE_LIMIT, ThrottleClassifier.classifyHttpStatus(503)?.kind)
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a 2xx status is not throttling`() {
+        assertNull(ThrottleClassifier.classifyHttpStatus(200))
+        assertNull(ThrottleClassifier.classifyHttpStatus(401))
+    }
+}
diff --git a/config/detekt/detekt.yml b/config/detekt/detekt.yml
index e42921a..72bbd0b 100644
--- a/config/detekt/detekt.yml
+++ b/config/detekt/detekt.yml
@@ -70,6 +70,9 @@ style:
       - '**/data/sync/MailSyncConcurrencyTest.kt'
       - '**/data/sync/PruneWorkerTest.kt'
       - '**/data/sync/BackfillWorkerTest.kt'
+      # #360 throttle gate: onThrottle/onSuccess breadcrumb through AppLog, which forwards to
+      # android.util.Log (a throwing JVM stub), so this suite mockkStatic(Log) too.
+      - '**/data/sync/AccountThrottleGateTest.kt'
       # Reader-path perf logging (issue #358): the repository's openMessage and the reader ViewModel
       # log via AppLog, so their unit tests mockkStatic(Log) too.
       - '**/data/repository/MailRepositoryImplTest.kt'