diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index c6761a1..322c245 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -2,6 +2,14 @@
 
 ## Unreleased
 
+- **Adaptive Cards: app text is never Markdown.** A `TextBlock` or `Fact`
+  whose text has Markdown syntax is a `RichTextBlock` `TextRun` now: a
+  model value or toast like `[verify your account](https://evil.example)`
+  was a live link in Teams and Copilot.
+- **`htmlToText` is linear.** Its patterns scanned from every `<` to the
+  end of the text (and the `<script>` pattern lazily to every later
+  closing tag): 100k characters of `<` in a message box's details held the
+  renderer for seconds. A lone `<` is now kept as text.
 - **Terminal renderer** (`renderers/terminal/`, export
   `@abap2ui5/protocol/renderers/terminal`, CLI `abap2ui5-tui <url> [--app
   <CLASS>] [--user u --password p | --cookie c] [--print] [--no-color]`):
diff --git a/renderers/adaptive-cards/README.md b/renderers/adaptive-cards/README.md
index 92c34b9..acc25b7 100644
--- a/renderers/adaptive-cards/README.md
+++ b/renderers/adaptive-cards/README.md
@@ -85,6 +85,15 @@ node renderers/adaptive-cards/demo.mjs --file response.json       # a response o
 - **Errors** are shown verbatim in a `RichTextBlock` `TextRun` - not
   markdown, so nothing of an error body is interpreted
   ([spec/errors.md](../../spec/errors.md#what-a-frontend-does-with-it)).
+- **App text is never Markdown.** A `TextBlock` and a `Fact` render their
+  text as Markdown, and their text is the app's: a model value
+  `[click me](https://evil.example)` was a live link in Teams. A text with
+  Markdown syntax (`* _ [ ] # ~` and backticks, a backslash, a list or quote
+  marker at a line start) is a `RichTextBlock` of one `TextRun` instead,
+  with the weight, size, color and subtlety it had (`maxLines` and the
+  heading style are the `TextBlock`'s own); a `FactSet` with such a fact is
+  a `Container` of one `RichTextBlock` per fact. Plain text stays a
+  `TextBlock`.
 - **Tolerance.** An element outside the profile becomes a placeholder
   `TextBlock` and an entry of `unsupported` (`{ slot, control, id?, reason
   }`), as do event wires a card cannot raise (`change`, `liveChange`,
diff --git a/renderers/adaptive-cards/golden/nest.card.json b/renderers/adaptive-cards/golden/nest.card.json
index 9fb45c8..dd03881 100644
--- a/renderers/adaptive-cards/golden/nest.card.json
+++ b/renderers/adaptive-cards/golden/nest.card.json
@@ -56,10 +56,14 @@
         "id": "slot-NEST",
         "items": [
           {
-            "type": "TextBlock",
-            "text": "[NEST view - not rendered]",
-            "isSubtle": true,
-            "wrap": true
+            "type": "RichTextBlock",
+            "inlines": [
+              {
+                "type": "TextRun",
+                "text": "[NEST view - not rendered]",
+                "isSubtle": true
+              }
+            ]
           }
         ]
       }
diff --git a/renderers/adaptive-cards/golden/sampler.card.json b/renderers/adaptive-cards/golden/sampler.card.json
index e3767cb..c834d9f 100644
--- a/renderers/adaptive-cards/golden/sampler.card.json
+++ b/renderers/adaptive-cards/golden/sampler.card.json
@@ -450,10 +450,14 @@
             ]
           },
           {
-            "type": "TextBlock",
-            "text": "[com.example.unknown.Gadget - not rendered]",
-            "isSubtle": true,
-            "wrap": true
+            "type": "RichTextBlock",
+            "inlines": [
+              {
+                "type": "TextRun",
+                "text": "[com.example.unknown.Gadget - not rendered]",
+                "isSubtle": true
+              }
+            ]
           },
           {
             "type": "ActionSet",
diff --git a/renderers/adaptive-cards/render.mjs b/renderers/adaptive-cards/render.mjs
index a3774ee..a6ce509 100644
--- a/renderers/adaptive-cards/render.mjs
+++ b/renderers/adaptive-cards/render.mjs
@@ -234,10 +234,45 @@ export function renderCard(state, { messages = [], error = null, typed = null }
     if (slot !== "MAIN") c.style = "emphasis";
     body.push(c);
   }
+  verbatim(body);
   const card = { type: "AdaptiveCard", $schema: CARD_SCHEMA, version: CARD_VERSION, body };
   return { card, unsupported };
 }
 
+/* A TextBlock renders its text as Markdown, and its text is the app's: a
+ * customer named "[click me](https://evil.example)" or a toast with
+ * "**[verify your account](...)**" was a live link in Teams and Copilot,
+ * where the UI5 frontend shows the text as it is (a Fact the same). A text with Markdown
+ * syntax becomes a RichTextBlock of one TextRun - never Markdown, as the
+ * error container already is - keeping weight, size, color and subtlety;
+ * a plain text stays a TextBlock (maxLines and the heading style are
+ * TextBlock's own). */
+const MARKDOWN = /[\\*_[\]`~#]|^\s*(?:[-+>]|\d+[.)])\s/m;
+const RUN_PROPS = ["weight", "size", "color", "isSubtle", "fontType"];
+const KEPT_PROPS = ["id", "spacing", "separator", "isVisible", "horizontalAlignment", "height"];
+
+function verbatim(body) {
+  walk(body, (e) => {
+    // a Fact's title and value are Markdown too: a FactSet with any becomes
+    // a Container of one RichTextBlock per fact, the title bolder
+    if (e.type === "FactSet" && Array.isArray(e.facts) && e.facts.some((f) => MARKDOWN.test(`${f.title}\n${f.value}`))) {
+      const items = e.facts.map((f) => ({ type: "RichTextBlock", inlines: [{ type: "TextRun", text: `${f.title} `, weight: "Bolder" }, { type: "TextRun", text: String(f.value) }] }));
+      const kept = {};
+      for (const k of KEPT_PROPS) if (e[k] !== undefined) kept[k] = e[k];
+      for (const k of Object.keys(e)) delete e[k];
+      Object.assign(e, { type: "Container", ...kept, items });
+      return;
+    }
+    if (e.type !== "TextBlock" || typeof e.text !== "string" || !MARKDOWN.test(e.text)) return;
+    const run = { type: "TextRun", text: e.text };
+    for (const k of RUN_PROPS) if (e[k] !== undefined) run[k] = e[k];
+    const block = { type: "RichTextBlock", inlines: [run] };
+    for (const k of KEPT_PROPS) if (e[k] !== undefined) block[k] = e[k];
+    for (const k of Object.keys(e)) delete e[k];
+    Object.assign(e, block);
+  });
+}
+
 /** The text a card shows (for tests and the conformance adapter). */
 export function cardText(items) {
   const out = [];
diff --git a/renderers/common/view.mjs b/renderers/common/view.mjs
index 03a3bb1..9d3e68e 100644
--- a/renderers/common/view.mjs
+++ b/renderers/common/view.mjs
@@ -235,14 +235,42 @@ export function parseSlot(xml) {
   return /^(View|FragmentDefinition)$/.test(doc.local) ? doc.children : [doc];
 }
 
+/* <script> and <style> blocks with their content, each to its first closing
+ * tag; one without a closing tag stays (its tag goes with the other tags),
+ * and so does every later one of that name - none can close either. */
+function dropBlocks(s) {
+  const open = /<(script|style)\b/gi;
+  const unclosed = new Set();
+  let out = "";
+  let at = 0;
+  let m;
+  while ((m = open.exec(s))) {
+    const name = m[1].toLowerCase();
+    if (unclosed.has(name)) continue;
+    const close = new RegExp(`</${name}\\s*>`, "gi");
+    close.lastIndex = open.lastIndex;
+    const c = close.exec(s);
+    if (!c) {
+      unclosed.add(name);
+      continue;
+    }
+    out += `${s.slice(at, m.index)} `;
+    at = close.lastIndex;
+    open.lastIndex = at;
+  }
+  return out + s.slice(at);
+}
+
 /** The text of HTML (a message box's details, core:HTML): tags dropped,
  *  entities decoded - nothing of the markup is rendered. */
 export function htmlToText(html) {
-  return String(html || "")
-    .replace(/<(script|style)\b[\s\S]*?<\/\1\s*>/gi, " ")
-    .replace(/<(br|\/p|\/li|\/div|\/h[1-6])\b[^>]*>/gi, "\n")
-    .replace(/<li\b[^>]*>/gi, "- ")
-    .replace(/<[^>]*>/g, "")
+  // no pattern here scans past the next "<": /<[^>]*>/ and the lazy
+  // <script>...</script> tried every "<" to the end of the text - quadratic,
+  // 100k characters of "<" held the renderer for seconds
+  return dropBlocks(String(html || ""))
+    .replace(/<(br|\/p|\/li|\/div|\/h[1-6])\b[^<>]*>/gi, "\n")
+    .replace(/<li\b[^<>]*>/gi, "- ")
+    .replace(/<[^<>]*>/g, "")
     .replace(/&nbsp;/g, " ")
     .replace(/&lt;/g, "<").replace(/&gt;/g, ">").replace(/&quot;/g, "\"").replace(/&#39;/g, "'").replace(/&amp;/g, "&")
     .split("\n").map((l) => l.replace(/\s+/g, " ").trim()).filter(Boolean).join("\n");
diff --git a/test/adaptive-cards.test.mjs b/test/adaptive-cards.test.mjs
index b28a737..0223490 100644
--- a/test/adaptive-cards.test.mjs
+++ b/test/adaptive-cards.test.mjs
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ import fs from "node:fs";
 import path from "node:path";
 import { test } from "node:test";
 import {
-  renderResponses, submitToRequest, createCardHost, cardText, walk, CONTROLS, TOLERATED, CARD_VERSION,
+  renderResponses, submitToRequest, createCardHost, cardText, walk, htmlToText, CONTROLS, TOLERATED, CARD_VERSION,
 } from "../renderers/adaptive-cards/index.mjs";
 import { renderMapping, apply, README } from "../scripts/render-adaptive-cards.mjs";
 import { startMock } from "../conformance/frontend/index.mjs";
@@ -127,6 +127,41 @@ test("the cards say what the views say", () => {
   assert.deepEqual(unsupported.map((u) => u.control), ["com.example.unknown.Gadget"]);
 });
 
+test("app text is never Markdown: a text or fact with Markdown syntax is a TextRun", () => {
+  const link = "Customer [click me](https://evil.example)";
+  const xml = '<mvc:View xmlns="sap.m" xmlns:mvc="sap.ui.core.mvc"><Page title="T">'
+    + '<Text text="{/C}"/><Title text="**bold** title"/><Text text="plain"/>'
+    + '<List items="{/L}"><StandardListItem title="{T}" description="{D}"/></List></Page></mvc:View>';
+  const response = {
+    S_FRONT: { ID: "1", APP: "Z_T", S_ACTION: { T_SYSTEM: [["VIEW_SLOTS", "display", "MAIN", xml]] } },
+    MODEL: { C: link, L: [{ T: "a", D: "[x](https://evil.example)" }] },
+  };
+  const toast = "**[verify your account](https://evil.example/login)**";
+  const { card } = renderResponses([response], { messages: [{ kind: "toast", text: toast }] });
+  assert.deepEqual(cardProblems(card), []);
+  const blocks = [];
+  const runs = [];
+  walk(card.body, (e) => {
+    if (e.type === "TextBlock") blocks.push(e.text);
+    if (e.type === "FactSet") blocks.push(...e.facts.flatMap((f) => [f.title, f.value]));
+    if (e.type === "RichTextBlock") runs.push(...e.inlines.map((i) => i.text));
+  });
+  assert.ok(blocks.includes("plain"), "a plain text stays a TextBlock");
+  assert.ok(!blocks.some((t) => /\]\(|\*\*/.test(t)), `no Markdown reaches a TextBlock or a Fact: ${blocks.join(" | ")}`);
+  for (const t of [link, "**bold** title", toast, "[x](https://evil.example)"]) assert.ok(runs.includes(t), `${t} as a TextRun`);
+});
+
+test("htmlToText: script and style dropped to their closing tag, and linear on unclosed markup", () => {
+  assert.equal(htmlToText("<p>a</p><script>x<b>y</b></script><STYLE>z</style >b<br>c<br><ul><li>d</li></ul>"), "a\nb\nc\n- d");
+  assert.equal(htmlToText("a < b <i>c</i>"), "a < b c", "a lone < is text");
+  assert.equal(htmlToText("<script>never closed <b>x</b>"), "never closed x", "an unclosed block stays");
+  for (const flood of ["<".repeat(100000), "<script".repeat(20000), "<br".repeat(30000)]) {
+    const t0 = Date.now();
+    htmlToText(flood);
+    assert.ok(Date.now() - t0 < 500, `${flood.slice(0, 8)}...: ${Date.now() - t0} ms`);
+  }
+});
+
 // ---------------------------------------------------- the reverse step ----
 
 test("an Action.Submit payload becomes the next request: changed inputs as the model delta", () => {