diff --git a/bin/install-latest-linux.sh b/bin/install-latest-linux.sh
index da516c9ae..5c23fb9e8 100755
--- a/bin/install-latest-linux.sh
+++ b/bin/install-latest-linux.sh
@@ -2,7 +2,27 @@
 set -eo pipefail
 
 # Install the latest version of the Linux binary
-DOWNLOAD_URL="$(curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/brevdev/brev-cli/releases/latest | grep "browser_download_url.*linux.*amd64" | cut -d '"' -f 4)"
+API_RESPONSE="$(curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/brevdev/brev-cli/releases/latest)"
+
+# Check for GitHub API rate limit error
+if echo "${API_RESPONSE}" | grep -q "API rate limit exceeded"; then
+    echo "Error: GitHub API rate limit exceeded." >&2
+    echo "" >&2
+    echo "This often happens when many requests come from the same IP address." >&2
+    echo "If you are using a VPN, try turning it off and running this script again." >&2
+    echo "" >&2
+    echo "For more details, see: https://docs.github.com/rest/overview/resources-in-the-rest-api#rate-limiting" >&2
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+DOWNLOAD_URL="$(echo "${API_RESPONSE}" | grep "browser_download_url.*linux.*amd64" | cut -d '"' -f 4)"
+
+if [ -z "${DOWNLOAD_URL}" ]; then
+    echo "Error: Could not find release for linux amd64" >&2
+    echo "GitHub API response:" >&2
+    echo "${API_RESPONSE}" >&2
+    exit 1
+fi
 
 # Create temporary directory and ensure cleanup
 TMP_DIR="$(mktemp -d)"
diff --git a/bin/install-latest.sh b/bin/install-latest.sh
index 16f5c6343..29328f9ec 100755
--- a/bin/install-latest.sh
+++ b/bin/install-latest.sh
@@ -10,11 +10,26 @@ case "${ARCH}" in
 esac
 
 # Get the appropriate download URL for this platform
-DOWNLOAD_URL="$(curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/brevdev/brev-cli/releases/latest | grep "browser_download_url.*${OS}.*${ARCH}" | cut -d '"' -f 4)"
+API_RESPONSE="$(curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/brevdev/brev-cli/releases/latest)"
+
+# Check for GitHub API rate limit error
+if echo "${API_RESPONSE}" | grep -q "API rate limit exceeded"; then
+    echo "Error: GitHub API rate limit exceeded." >&2
+    echo "" >&2
+    echo "This often happens when many requests come from the same IP address." >&2
+    echo "If you are using a VPN, try turning it off and running this script again." >&2
+    echo "" >&2
+    echo "For more details, see: https://docs.github.com/rest/overview/resources-in-the-rest-api#rate-limiting" >&2
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+DOWNLOAD_URL="$(echo "${API_RESPONSE}" | grep "browser_download_url.*${OS}.*${ARCH}" | cut -d '"' -f 4)"
 
 # Verify we found a suitable release
 if [ -z "${DOWNLOAD_URL}" ]; then
     echo "Error: Could not find release for ${OS} ${ARCH}" >&2
+    echo "GitHub API response:" >&2
+    echo "${API_RESPONSE}" >&2
     exit 1
 fi
 
diff --git a/scripts/install-agent-skill.sh b/scripts/install-agent-skill.sh
index e8597c2e3..5f73f1e0b 100755
--- a/scripts/install-agent-skill.sh
+++ b/scripts/install-agent-skill.sh
@@ -116,12 +116,21 @@ done
 rm -rf "$TMPDIR"
 
 # Resolve commit SHA and write .version file
-COMMIT_SHA=$(curl -fsSL "https://api.github.com/repos/$REPO/commits/$BRANCH" 2>/dev/null | grep '"sha"' | head -1 | sed 's/.*"sha": *"\([^"]*\)".*/\1/')
-if [[ -n "$COMMIT_SHA" ]]; then
-    for dir in "${INSTALL_DIRS[@]}"; do
-        printf 'branch=%s\ncommit=%s\n' "$BRANCH" "$COMMIT_SHA" > "$dir/.version"
-    done
-    echo -e "  ${GREEN}✓${NC} .version (${COMMIT_SHA:0:12})"
+VERSION_RESPONSE=$(curl -fsSL "https://api.github.com/repos/$REPO/commits/$BRANCH" 2>&1) || true
+if echo "$VERSION_RESPONSE" | grep -q "API rate limit exceeded"; then
+    echo -e "  ${YELLOW}⚠${NC} .version (skipped — GitHub API rate limit exceeded)"
+    echo -e "  ${YELLOW}If you are using a VPN, try turning it off and running this script again.${NC}"
+    echo -e "  ${YELLOW}See: https://docs.github.com/rest/overview/resources-in-the-rest-api#rate-limiting${NC}"
+else
+    COMMIT_SHA=$(echo "$VERSION_RESPONSE" | grep '"sha"' | head -1 | sed 's/.*"sha": *"\([^"]*\)".*/\1/')
+    if [[ -n "$COMMIT_SHA" ]]; then
+        for dir in "${INSTALL_DIRS[@]}"; do
+            printf 'branch=%s\ncommit=%s\n' "$BRANCH" "$COMMIT_SHA" > "$dir/.version"
+        done
+        echo -e "  ${GREEN}✓${NC} .version (${COMMIT_SHA:0:12})"
+    else
+        echo -e "  ${YELLOW}⚠${NC} .version (could not resolve commit SHA)"
+    fi
 fi
 
 echo ""