diff --git a/TODOS.md b/TODOS.md
index b2987e3..4f9e7c4 100644
--- a/TODOS.md
+++ b/TODOS.md
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@
 
 5. Generate md and man pages again.
 
-6. **db.odin:324-327** — Map iteration (`remote_set`) is non-deterministic. Same file can produce different JSON on each backup, causing spurious DB diffs. Sort remotes before storing.
+6. Json may be an expensive encoding for remotes. Confirm with spall, and use null terminated strings if necessary.
 
 7. Make sure official path separators are used when appropriate, rather than '/'.
 
@@ -20,8 +20,6 @@
 
 10. **config.odin:178** — `search_paths` silently ignores `os.user_home_dir` error. If home is empty, `~` isn't expanded. Same class of bug as issue 3.
 
-11. **db.odin:115** — `json.unmarshal_string` error not checked. Malformed JSON silently produces empty/partial data.
-
 12. **db.odin:352-353** — `hex.encode` error ignored. `string(hex_bytes)` aliases the byte slice.
 
 13. **cmd_sync.odin:80, cmd_list.odin:33** — `make([]string, 2)` for table rows never freed. Leaks per row. Defer to memory pass.
diff --git a/db.odin b/db.odin
index 88dd604..22d29d4 100644
--- a/db.odin
+++ b/db.odin
@@ -219,7 +219,10 @@ db_list :: proc(db: ^Db) -> ([]EnvFile, bool) {
 		remotes_json := string(sqlite.column_text(stmt, 1))
 		remotes: [dynamic]string = ---
 		if len(remotes_json) > 0 {
-			json.unmarshal_string(remotes_json, &remotes, allocator = allocator)
+			err := json.unmarshal_string(remotes_json, &remotes, allocator = allocator)
+			if err != nil {
+				fmt.eprintf("Warning: malformed remotes JSON: %v\n", err)
+			}
 		}
 		path := clone_cstring(sqlite.column_text(stmt, 0), allocator)
 
@@ -333,7 +336,10 @@ db_fetch :: proc(db: ^Db, path: string) -> (EnvFile, bool) {
 	remotes_json := string(sqlite.column_text(stmt, 1))
 	remotes: [dynamic]string = ---
 	if len(remotes_json) > 0 {
-		json.unmarshal_string(remotes_json, &remotes, allocator = allocator)
+		err := json.unmarshal_string(remotes_json, &remotes, allocator = allocator)
+		if err != nil {
+			fmt.eprintf("Warning: malformed remotes JSON: %v\n", err)
+		}
 	}
 
 	file_path := clone_cstring(sqlite.column_text(stmt, 0), allocator)