diff --git a/docker/compose/docker-compose.env b/docker/compose/docker-compose.env
index 75eeeed09..af6a6e8fe 100644
--- a/docker/compose/docker-compose.env
+++ b/docker/compose/docker-compose.env
@@ -17,9 +17,9 @@
 # (if doing so please consider security measures such as reverse proxy)
 #PAPERLESS_URL=https://paperless.example.com
 
-# Adjust this key if you plan to make paperless available publicly. It should
-# be a very long sequence of random characters. You don't need to remember it.
-#PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY=change-me
+# Required. A unique secret key for session tokens and signing.
+# Generate with: python3 -c "import secrets; print(secrets.token_urlsafe(64))"
+PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY=change-me
 
 # Use this variable to set a timezone for the Paperless Docker containers. Defaults to UTC.
 #PAPERLESS_TIME_ZONE=America/Los_Angeles
diff --git a/docs/configuration.md b/docs/configuration.md
index 33f41c993..fa0d32c51 100644
--- a/docs/configuration.md
+++ b/docs/configuration.md
@@ -428,14 +428,20 @@ Defaults to `/usr/share/nltk_data`
 
 #### [`PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY=<key>`](#PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY) {#PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY}
 
-: Paperless uses this to make session tokens. If you expose paperless
-on the internet, you need to change this, since the default secret
-is well known.
+: **Required.** Paperless uses this to make session tokens and sign
+sensitive data. Paperless will refuse to start if this is not set.
 
     Use any sequence of characters. The more, the better. You don't
-    need to remember this. Just face-roll your keyboard.
+    need to remember this. You can generate a suitable key with:
 
-    Default is listed in the file `src/paperless/settings.py`.
+        python3 -c "import secrets; print(secrets.token_urlsafe(64))"
+
+    !!! warning
+
+        This setting has no default value. You **must** set it before
+        starting Paperless. Existing installations that relied on the
+        previous default value should set `PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY` to
+        that value to avoid invalidating existing sessions and tokens.
 
 #### [`PAPERLESS_URL=<url>`](#PAPERLESS_URL) {#PAPERLESS_URL}
 
diff --git a/paperless.conf.example b/paperless.conf.example
index 9974aeab6..a0c406f82 100644
--- a/paperless.conf.example
+++ b/paperless.conf.example
@@ -23,7 +23,8 @@
 
 # Security and hosting
 
-#PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY=change-me
+# Required. Generate with: python3 -c "import secrets; print(secrets.token_urlsafe(64))"
+PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY=change-me
 #PAPERLESS_URL=https://example.com
 #PAPERLESS_CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS=https://example.com # can be set using PAPERLESS_URL
 #PAPERLESS_ALLOWED_HOSTS=example.com,www.example.com # can be set using PAPERLESS_URL
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index 30c707e09..7bb160956 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -315,6 +315,7 @@ markers = [
 ]
 
 [tool.pytest_env]
+PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY = "test-secret-key-do-not-use-in-production"
 PAPERLESS_DISABLE_DBHANDLER = "true"
 PAPERLESS_CACHE_BACKEND = "django.core.cache.backends.locmem.LocMemCache"
 PAPERLESS_CHANNELS_BACKEND = "channels.layers.InMemoryChannelLayer"
diff --git a/src/paperless/settings/__init__.py b/src/paperless/settings/__init__.py
index d51be67db..25731d87a 100644
--- a/src/paperless/settings/__init__.py
+++ b/src/paperless/settings/__init__.py
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ from typing import Final
 from urllib.parse import urlparse
 
 from compression_middleware.middleware import CompressionMiddleware
+from django.core.exceptions import ImproperlyConfigured
 from django.utils.translation import gettext_lazy as _
 from dotenv import load_dotenv
 
@@ -463,13 +464,13 @@ SECURE_PROXY_SSL_HEADER = (
     else None
 )
 
-# The secret key has a default that should be fine so long as you're hosting
-# Paperless on a closed network.  However, if you're putting this anywhere
-# public, you should change the key to something unique and verbose.
-SECRET_KEY = os.getenv(
-    "PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY",
-    "e11fl1oa-*ytql8p)(06fbj4ukrlo+n7k&q5+$1md7i+mge=ee",
-)
+SECRET_KEY = os.getenv("PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY", "")
+if not SECRET_KEY:
+    raise ImproperlyConfigured(
+        "PAPERLESS_SECRET_KEY is not set. "
+        "A unique, secret key is required for secure operation. "
+        'Generate one with: python3 -c "import secrets; print(secrets.token_urlsafe(64))"',
+    )
 
 AUTH_PASSWORD_VALIDATORS = [
     {