From acf3c3b5c10c8cd8a08e4c0671dc6df36a4b2208 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Jonathan Katz <44128041+jkatz01@users.noreply.github.com>
Date: Mon, 4 May 2026 16:29:41 -0400
Subject: [PATCH] Require bug fixes to be manually validated in community PRs
 (#44689)

---
 .github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/bug-report.md | 1 +
 handbook/engineering/README.md       | 2 ++
 2 files changed, 3 insertions(+)

diff --git a/.github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/bug-report.md b/.github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/bug-report.md
index aee03bb3d9..b0019ef8ef 100644
--- a/.github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/bug-report.md
+++ b/.github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/bug-report.md
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ TODO
 
 ### 🧑‍💻  Steps to reproduce
 <!-- Provide step-by-step actions of how to recreate this bug in a clean install of Fleet. (This helps others understand and fix it more quickly.) -->
+<!-- PRs that fix this bug must include reproduction and manual verification. -->
 
 These steps:
 
diff --git a/handbook/engineering/README.md b/handbook/engineering/README.md
index 02c72de7eb..bffe832271 100644
--- a/handbook/engineering/README.md
+++ b/handbook/engineering/README.md
@@ -96,6 +96,8 @@ If you're assigned a community pull request (PR) for review, it is important to
 
 If the PR is a quick fix (i.e. typo) or obvious technical improvement that doesn't change the product, it can be merged.
 
+If the PR is a bug fix that the author has not validated manually, close the PR. Notify the author that the PR will be re-opened and reviewed after they validate the fix.
+
 Make sure to create a Github issue and link it to the PR so that we can track the changes in our release process. Make sure to assign the correct milestone to the issue (by having an issue, QA will make sure the fix is not causing regressions).
 
 **For PRs that change the product:**