diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index df84e1a..9932283 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -2,6 +2,14 @@
 
 All notable changes to iNTERCEPT will be documented in this file.
 
+## [2.26.1] - 2026-03-13
+
+### Fixed
+- **Default admin credentials** — Default `ADMIN_PASSWORD` changed from empty string to `admin`, matching the README documentation (`admin:admin`)
+- **Config credential sync** — Admin password changes in `config.py` or via `INTERCEPT_ADMIN_PASSWORD` env var now sync to the database on restart, without needing to delete the DB
+
+---
+
 ## [2.26.0] - 2026-03-13
 
 ### Fixed
diff --git a/config.py b/config.py
index b9260c3..f570824 100644
--- a/config.py
+++ b/config.py
@@ -7,10 +7,18 @@ import os
 import sys
 
 # Application version
-VERSION = "2.26.0"
+VERSION = "2.26.1"
 
 # Changelog - latest release notes (shown on welcome screen)
 CHANGELOG = [
+    {
+        "version": "2.26.1",
+        "date": "March 2026",
+        "highlights": [
+            "Fix default admin credentials — now matches README (admin:admin)",
+            "Admin password changes in config.py / env vars now sync to DB on restart",
+        ]
+    },
     {
         "version": "2.26.0",
         "date": "March 2026",
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index dbbe184..c25f199 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [project]
 name = "intercept"
-version = "2.26.0"
+version = "2.26.1"
 description = "Signal Intelligence Platform - Pager/433MHz/ADS-B/Satellite/WiFi/Bluetooth"
 readme = "README.md"
 requires-python = ">=3.9"