diff --git a/api/helpers.py b/api/helpers.py
index 2337bb70..79a6c8f3 100644
--- a/api/helpers.py
+++ b/api/helpers.py
@@ -236,11 +236,16 @@ def advertise_connection_close(handler) -> None:
 
     Both attribute reads are defensive: partially-built handler stubs in the
     test suite carry neither ``close_connection`` nor ``_headers_buffer``, and
-    header emission must not depend on their presence.
+    header emission must not depend on their presence. The buffer is also
+    type-checked before it is scanned -- a stub whose ``_headers_buffer`` is a
+    truthy non-iterable (a bare ``Mock``) would otherwise raise ``TypeError``
+    from inside ``end_headers()``, which ``_handle_write`` would swallow into a
+    spurious 500.
     """
     if not getattr(handler, 'close_connection', False):
         return
-    for raw in getattr(handler, '_headers_buffer', None) or ():
+    buffered = getattr(handler, '_headers_buffer', None)
+    for raw in buffered if isinstance(buffered, (list, tuple)) else ():
         if raw[:11].lower() == b'connection:':
             return
     handler.send_header('Connection', 'close')
diff --git a/tests/test_rejected_write_connection_close.py b/tests/test_rejected_write_connection_close.py
index bd7ddb4f..a1bfc9a5 100644
--- a/tests/test_rejected_write_connection_close.py
+++ b/tests/test_rejected_write_connection_close.py
@@ -228,6 +228,26 @@ def test_end_headers_on_handler_stub_without_close_connection(monkeypatch):
     assert "Connection" not in dict(sent), "nothing was armed, so nothing to advertise"
 
 
+def test_advertise_close_tolerates_a_non_iterable_header_buffer():
+    """The dedup scan must be as defensive as the two attribute reads.
+
+    A bare ``Mock`` answers every attribute, so ``_headers_buffer`` comes back
+    truthy but non-iterable. Iterating it unguarded raised
+    ``TypeError: 'Mock' object is not iterable`` from inside ``end_headers()``,
+    which ``_handle_write``'s generic ``except`` turns into a spurious 500 —
+    the same crash-inside-end_headers class as the missing
+    ``close_connection`` guard above.
+    """
+    from unittest.mock import Mock
+
+    from api.helpers import advertise_connection_close
+
+    handler = Mock()
+    advertise_connection_close(handler)  # must not raise
+
+    handler.send_header.assert_called_once_with("Connection", "close")
+
+
 def test_check_auth_or_close_on_handler_stub_without_close_connection(monkeypatch):
     """check_auth_or_close must not invent close_connection on a stub.