diff --git a/src/ui/windows/contacts_tab.cpp b/src/ui/windows/contacts_tab.cpp
index 790bfec..08aa83a 100644
--- a/src/ui/windows/contacts_tab.cpp
+++ b/src/ui/windows/contacts_tab.cpp
@@ -169,8 +169,9 @@ static void pruneOrphanAvatar(const std::string& oldAvatar, const data::AddressB
     const std::string path = oldAvatar.substr(4);
     fs::path managed = fs::weakly_canonical(fs::path(util::Platform::getConfigDir()) / "contact-avatars", ec);
     fs::path target  = fs::weakly_canonical(fs::path(path), ec);
-    // Only prune files actually inside the managed dir (guards against a hand-edited external path).
-    if (managed.empty() || target.string().rfind(managed.string(), 0) != 0) return;
+    // Only prune files sitting DIRECTLY in the managed dir (copyAvatarImage never nests) — a parent-path
+    // compare avoids string-prefix false matches (e.g. a sibling "contact-avatars-x") and path escapes.
+    if (managed.empty() || target.parent_path() != managed) return;
     fs::remove(target, ec);
     invalidateAvatarTexture(path);
 }