diff --git a/apps/desktop/electron/challenge-window.ts b/apps/desktop/electron/challenge-window.ts
index f7cb0ab3cf..d3f9072092 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/electron/challenge-window.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/electron/challenge-window.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 import type { BrowserWindow, BrowserWindowConstructorOptions, Session } from 'electron'
 
+import { createWindowOpenHandler } from './window-open-policy'
+
 /**
  * The free tier's browser challenge, desktop half.
  *
@@ -33,6 +35,8 @@ import type { BrowserWindow, BrowserWindowConstructorOptions, Session } from 'el
 
 export type ChallengePhase = 'working' | 'interactive' | 'done' | 'failed'
 
+// The contract's ``free_tier.challenge_result`` outcomes minus the renderer-only 'unsupported';
+// the renderer reports these through that type, so a drift fails its typecheck.
 export type ChallengeOutcome = 'done' | 'failed' | 'closed' | 'timeout' | 'refused' | 'error'
 
 export interface ChallengeRequest {
@@ -255,7 +259,9 @@ export function createChallengeWindows({
       const contents = win.webContents
 
       contents.setAudioMuted(true)
-      contents.setWindowOpenHandler(() => ({ action: 'deny' }))
+      contents.setWindowOpenHandler(
+        createWindowOpenHandler(origin => rememberLog(`[free-tier] challenge popup denied: ${origin}`))
+      )
 
       // The page may move within the portal (a fragment, a reload); it may not
       // take this window anywhere else — by script (`will-navigate`) or by a
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-message-stream/gateway-event/lifecycle.ts b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-message-stream/gateway-event/lifecycle.ts
index 5074f371a5..5ef4221cb5 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-message-stream/gateway-event/lifecycle.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-message-stream/gateway-event/lifecycle.ts
@@ -63,9 +63,7 @@ export function handleLifecycleEvent(ctx: GatewayEventContext): boolean {
     const connectionId = event.connectionId ?? activeGatewayConnectionId()
     const profile = event.profile ?? deps.activeGatewayProfile
 
-    void runFreeTierChallenge(payload, result =>
-      requestGatewayForAgent(connectionId, profile, 'free_tier.challenge_result', result)
-    )
+    void runFreeTierChallenge(payload, (method, params) => requestGatewayForAgent(connectionId, profile, method, params))
 
     return true
   }
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/global.d.ts b/apps/desktop/src/global.d.ts
index 811c15fa1c..007eb281d3 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/global.d.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/global.d.ts
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ import type { GatewayWsUrlResult } from '@hermes/shared'
 import type { HermesSkin } from '@hermes/shared/skin'
 import type { TranslucencyState } from '@hermes/shared/translucency'
 
+import type { ChallengeOutcome } from '../electron/challenge-window'
 import type { ScreenshotApi } from '../electron/command-screenshot-types'
 import type { HudModifierApi } from '../electron/hud-modifier-types'
 import type { MachineProfile } from '../electron/machine-profile'
@@ -422,7 +423,7 @@ declare global {
           required: boolean
           expiresIn?: number
           attempt?: number
-        }) => Promise<'done' | 'failed' | 'closed' | 'timeout' | 'refused' | 'error'>
+        }) => Promise<ChallengeOutcome>
       }
       /** One-shot loopback callback listener for MCP OAuth against remote
        *  backends (electron/mcp-oauth-callback-ipc.ts): bind on THIS machine,
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier-challenge.test.ts b/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier-challenge.test.ts
index 296cc5caf2..fa4e1f71e4 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier-challenge.test.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier-challenge.test.ts
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ describe('runFreeTierChallenge', () => {
     installBridge(run)
     await expect(runFreeTierChallenge({ ...challenge, attempt: 3 }, report)).resolves.toBe('error')
     expect(run).toHaveBeenCalledWith(expect.objectContaining({ attempt: 3 }))
-    expect(report).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ url: challenge.url, attempt: 3, outcome: 'error' })
+    expect(report).toHaveBeenCalledWith('free_tier.challenge_result', { url: challenge.url, attempt: 3, outcome: 'error' })
   })
   it('hands a browser challenge to the main process', async () => {
     const run = vi.fn().mockResolvedValue('done')
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier-challenge.ts b/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier-challenge.ts
index 26fc6619cf..7781c32fdc 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier-challenge.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier-challenge.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { FreeTierChallengePayload } from '@hermes/shared'
+import type { FreeTierChallengePayload, FreeTierChallengeResultParams } from '@hermes/shared'
 
 /**
  * The free tier's browser challenge, renderer half: a relay. The backend
@@ -10,14 +10,12 @@ import type { FreeTierChallengePayload } from '@hermes/shared'
  * The event and a status read can both name the same attempt.
  */
 
-export type FreeTierChallengeOutcome = 'done' | 'failed' | 'closed' | 'timeout' | 'refused' | 'error' | 'unsupported'
+export type FreeTierChallengeOutcome = FreeTierChallengeResultParams['outcome']
+
+/** Sends ``free_tier.challenge_result`` to the backend that announced the challenge. */
+export type ChallengeRequester = (method: 'free_tier.challenge_result', params: Record<string, unknown>) => Promise<unknown>
 
 const inFlight = new Map<string, Promise<FreeTierChallengeOutcome>>()
-type ChallengeReporter = (result: {
-  url: string
-  attempt: number
-  outcome: FreeTierChallengeOutcome
-}) => Promise<unknown>
 
 function isBrowserChallenge(value: unknown): value is FreeTierChallengePayload {
   if (typeof value !== 'object' || value === null) {
@@ -31,7 +29,7 @@ function isBrowserChallenge(value: unknown): value is FreeTierChallengePayload {
 
 export function runFreeTierChallenge(
   challenge: unknown,
-  report?: ChallengeReporter
+  requestGateway?: ChallengeRequester
 ): Promise<FreeTierChallengeOutcome> | null {
   if (!isBrowserChallenge(challenge)) {
     return null
@@ -52,7 +50,7 @@ export function runFreeTierChallenge(
   // never grants a credential, so a failed report is not worth surfacing.
   const reported = async (outcome: FreeTierChallengeOutcome) => {
     try {
-      await report?.({ url: challenge.url, attempt, outcome })
+      await requestGateway?.('free_tier.challenge_result', { url: challenge.url, attempt, outcome })
     } catch {
       // see above
     }
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier.ts b/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier.ts
index b528141ec3..42924d4119 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/store/free-tier.ts
@@ -47,7 +47,7 @@ export async function refreshFreeTierStatus(requestGateway: FreeTierRequester):
     $freeTierStatus.set(status)
     // A client that connected after the `free_tier.challenge` event still has
     // a window to open; the run is de-duplicated per URL.
-    void runFreeTierChallenge(status.challenge, result => requestGateway('free_tier.challenge_result', result))
+    void runFreeTierChallenge(status.challenge, requestGateway)
 
     return status
   } catch {