diff --git a/v3/api/client.go b/v3/api/client.go
index 4320056..2d9b4a5 100644
--- a/v3/api/client.go
+++ b/v3/api/client.go
@@ -434,8 +434,30 @@ func (c *Client) sendRequest(request *request) (*http.Response, error) {
 	log.Printf("[DEBUG] Response code from '%s' request to '%s': %d", request.Method, request.Endpoint, resp.StatusCode)
 	if resp.StatusCode == http.StatusOK || resp.StatusCode == http.StatusNoContent {
 		log.Printf("[DEBUG] '%s' request to '%s' succeeded", request.Method, request.Endpoint)
+		// Callers of sendRequest decode resp.Body and (in most cases) never
+		// close it. An unclosed body that has not been read to EOF pins its
+		// connection, and the auth-client transports cap connections per host,
+		// so after a handful of such calls every later request blocks forever
+		// in net/http.(*Transport).getConn. Release the connection here by
+		// buffering the body and handing callers an in-memory, already-closed
+		// reader, so no caller can leak it.
+		if bErr := bufferResponseBody(resp); bErr != nil {
+			log.Printf(
+				"[ERROR] Error reading response body for '%s' request to '%s': %s",
+				request.Method,
+				request.Endpoint,
+				bErr,
+			)
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("error reading response body from Keyfactor Command: %w", bErr)
+		}
 		return resp, nil
-	} else if resp.StatusCode == http.StatusNotFound {
+	}
+
+	// Every remaining branch returns an error and never hands resp to the
+	// caller, so sendRequest owns the body: always release the connection.
+	defer drainAndCloseBody(resp.Body)
+
+	if resp.StatusCode == http.StatusNotFound {
 		stringMessage = fmt.Sprintf(
 			"Error %d - the requested resource was not found. Please check the request and try again.",
 			resp.StatusCode,
@@ -557,6 +579,42 @@ func (c *Client) sendRequest(request *request) (*http.Response, error) {
 	}
 }
 
+// bufferResponseBody reads resp.Body fully, closes the original body (which
+// returns the underlying connection to the transport's pool) and replaces
+// resp.Body with an in-memory reader. The replacement's Close is a no-op, so
+// callers may or may not call it. Every existing caller already decodes the
+// whole body into memory, so buffering does not raise peak memory beyond one
+// extra copy of the raw response for the duration of the call.
+func bufferResponseBody(resp *http.Response) error {
+	if resp == nil || resp.Body == nil || resp.Body == http.NoBody {
+		return nil
+	}
+	data, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
+	closeErr := resp.Body.Close()
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	if closeErr != nil {
+		log.Printf("[WARN] Error closing response body: %s", closeErr)
+	}
+	resp.Body = io.NopCloser(bytes.NewReader(data))
+	return nil
+}
+
+// maxDrainBytes bounds how much of an unread error-response body is consumed
+// so the connection can be reused instead of discarded.
+const maxDrainBytes = 64 << 10
+
+// drainAndCloseBody discards (a bounded amount of) any unread data and closes
+// the body so the connection is released back to the transport.
+func drainAndCloseBody(body io.ReadCloser) {
+	if body == nil {
+		return
+	}
+	_, _ = io.Copy(io.Discard, io.LimitReader(body, maxDrainBytes))
+	_ = body.Close()
+}
+
 func getTimestamp() string {
 	return time.Now().UTC().Format(time.RFC3339)
 }
diff --git a/v3/api/response_body_leak_test.go b/v3/api/response_body_leak_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2d55110
--- /dev/null
+++ b/v3/api/response_body_leak_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,266 @@
+// Copyright 2024 Keyfactor
+//
+// Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+// you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+// You may obtain a copy of the License at
+//
+//     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+//
+// Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+// distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+// WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+// See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+// limitations under the License.
+
+package api
+
+import (
+	"crypto/ecdsa"
+	"crypto/elliptic"
+	"crypto/rand"
+	"crypto/tls"
+	"crypto/x509"
+	"crypto/x509/pkix"
+	"encoding/base64"
+	"encoding/json"
+	"fmt"
+	"math/big"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
+	"strings"
+	"sync/atomic"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/Keyfactor/keyfactor-auth-client-go/auth_providers"
+	"go.mozilla.org/pkcs7"
+)
+
+// leakTestMaxConns mirrors the shape of the production transport built by
+// keyfactor-auth-client-go (MaxConnsPerHost: 10, no Client.Timeout) but with a
+// tiny cap so a leak of just a few response bodies is enough to wedge the
+// client.
+const leakTestMaxConns = 2
+
+// leakTestAuthConfig is a minimal AuthConfig whose *http.Client uses a
+// transport with a hard per-host connection cap and no client timeout, exactly
+// like the production auth providers. A request that never releases its
+// connection (an unclosed/undrained response body) permanently consumes one
+// slot; once the cap is exhausted the next request blocks forever in
+// net/http.(*Transport).getConn.
+type leakTestAuthConfig struct {
+	server *httptest.Server
+	client *http.Client
+}
+
+func newLeakTestAuthConfig(t *testing.T, handler http.Handler) *leakTestAuthConfig {
+	t.Helper()
+	srv := httptest.NewTLSServer(handler)
+	tr := &http.Transport{
+		TLSClientConfig:     &tls.Config{InsecureSkipVerify: true}, //nolint:gosec // httptest self-signed cert
+		MaxConnsPerHost:     leakTestMaxConns,
+		MaxIdleConnsPerHost: leakTestMaxConns,
+	}
+	a := &leakTestAuthConfig{server: srv, client: &http.Client{Transport: tr}} // Timeout deliberately 0
+	t.Cleanup(func() {
+		// Unblock anything wedged by a leak before closing so the failing run
+		// reports promptly instead of hanging in Server.Close.
+		srv.CloseClientConnections()
+		tr.CloseIdleConnections()
+		srv.Close()
+	})
+	return a
+}
+
+func (a *leakTestAuthConfig) GetServerConfig() *auth_providers.Server {
+	return &auth_providers.Server{Host: a.server.URL, APIPath: "KeyfactorAPI", SkipTLSVerify: true}
+}
+func (a *leakTestAuthConfig) GetHttpClient() (*http.Client, error) { return a.client, nil }
+func (a *leakTestAuthConfig) Authenticate() error                  { return nil }
+func (a *leakTestAuthConfig) GetCommandVersion() string            { return "25.1.0.0" }
+
+// runWithDeadline runs fn and fails the test if it does not return within d.
+// A wedged client never returns, so this is how a connection leak shows up.
+func runWithDeadline(t *testing.T, d time.Duration, what string, fn func() error) {
+	t.Helper()
+	done := make(chan error, 1)
+	go func() { done <- fn() }()
+	select {
+	case err := <-done:
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("%s: %v", what, err)
+		}
+	case <-time.After(d):
+		t.Fatalf("%s: did not complete within %s - client is wedged waiting for a connection "+
+			"(response bodies are being leaked; MaxConnsPerHost=%d exhausted)", what, d, leakTestMaxConns)
+	}
+}
+
+// selfSignedP7B returns a base64 PKCS#7 bundle containing one self-signed
+// certificate, in the shape Certificates/Download returns it.
+func selfSignedP7B(t *testing.T) string {
+	t.Helper()
+	key, err := ecdsa.GenerateKey(elliptic.P256(), rand.Reader)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	tmpl := &x509.Certificate{
+		SerialNumber: big.NewInt(1),
+		Subject:      pkix.Name{CommonName: "leak-test"},
+		NotBefore:    time.Now().Add(-time.Hour),
+		NotAfter:     time.Now().Add(time.Hour),
+	}
+	der, err := x509.CreateCertificate(rand.Reader, tmpl, tmpl, &key.PublicKey, key)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	p7, err := pkcs7.DegenerateCertificate(der)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	return base64.StdEncoding.EncodeToString(p7)
+}
+
+// TestDownloadCertificate_DoesNotLeakConnections calls DownloadCertificate far
+// more times than the transport's per-host connection cap. Before the fix the
+// response body was decoded but never closed, so each call pinned a
+// connection and the (cap+1)th call blocked forever.
+func TestDownloadCertificate_DoesNotLeakConnections(t *testing.T) {
+	p7b := selfSignedP7B(t)
+	payload, _ := json.Marshal(map[string]string{"Content": p7b})
+
+	for _, mode := range []string{"content-length", "chunked"} {
+		t.Run(mode, func(t *testing.T) {
+			var served int32
+			auth := newLeakTestAuthConfig(t, http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+				atomic.AddInt32(&served, 1)
+				w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
+				if mode == "chunked" {
+					// Flushing before the handler returns forces chunked
+					// transfer encoding (no Content-Length), like
+					// ASP.NET/IIS streaming responses.
+					w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
+					_, _ = w.Write(payload[:len(payload)/2])
+					w.(http.Flusher).Flush()
+					_, _ = w.Write(payload[len(payload)/2:])
+					// Flush the last data chunk and hold the terminating zero-length
+					// chunk back, so a json.Decoder that stops as soon as the value
+					// is complete never observes io.EOF (deterministic, not racy).
+					w.(http.Flusher).Flush()
+					time.Sleep(100 * time.Millisecond)
+					return
+				}
+				w.Header().Set("Content-Length", fmt.Sprint(len(payload)))
+				_, _ = w.Write(payload)
+			}))
+			c := &Client{AuthClient: auth}
+
+			const calls = leakTestMaxConns * 5
+			runWithDeadline(t, 10*time.Second, "DownloadCertificate loop", func() error {
+				for i := 0; i < calls; i++ {
+					leaf, _, _, err := c.DownloadCertificate(i+1, "", "", "", 0, "PEM")
+					if err != nil {
+						return fmt.Errorf("call %d: %w", i, err)
+					}
+					if leaf == nil {
+						return fmt.Errorf("call %d: nil leaf", i)
+					}
+				}
+				return nil
+			})
+			if got := atomic.LoadInt32(&served); got != calls {
+				t.Fatalf("server saw %d requests, want %d", got, calls)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+// TestSendRequest_DoesNotLeakConnections drives sendRequest directly for every
+// status-code branch, including callers that never touch the returned body
+// and error responses whose body the library decodes itself, and asserts the
+// connection is released each time.
+func TestSendRequest_DoesNotLeakConnections(t *testing.T) {
+	bigBody := `{"Message":"` + strings.Repeat("x", 64*1024) + `"}`
+
+	cases := []struct {
+		name       string
+		status     int
+		body       string
+		wantErr    bool
+		chunked    bool
+		readsBody  bool
+		wantBodyEq string
+	}{
+		{name: "200 body never read by caller", status: 200, body: bigBody},
+		{name: "200 chunked body never read by caller", status: 200, body: bigBody, chunked: true},
+		{name: "200 body fully decoded by caller", status: 200, body: `{"ok":true}`, readsBody: true, wantBodyEq: `{"ok":true}`},
+		{name: "204 no content", status: 204},
+		{name: "404 json error body", status: 404, body: bigBody, wantErr: true},
+		{name: "404 non-json body", status: 404, body: "<html>nope</html>", wantErr: true},
+		{name: "401 body", status: 401, body: bigBody, wantErr: true},
+		{name: "500 json error body", status: 500, body: bigBody, wantErr: true},
+		{name: "500 chunked json error body", status: 500, body: bigBody, wantErr: true, chunked: true},
+		{name: "400 non-json body", status: 400, body: "bad", wantErr: true},
+	}
+	for _, tc := range cases {
+		t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			auth := newLeakTestAuthConfig(t, http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+				w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
+				if tc.chunked {
+					w.WriteHeader(tc.status)
+					half := len(tc.body) / 2
+					_, _ = w.Write([]byte(tc.body[:half]))
+					w.(http.Flusher).Flush()
+					_, _ = w.Write([]byte(tc.body[half:]))
+					w.(http.Flusher).Flush()
+					time.Sleep(100 * time.Millisecond) // hold back the terminating chunk
+					return
+				}
+				if tc.status != 204 {
+					w.Header().Set("Content-Length", fmt.Sprint(len(tc.body)))
+				}
+				w.WriteHeader(tc.status)
+				if tc.status != 204 {
+					_, _ = w.Write([]byte(tc.body))
+				}
+			}))
+			c := &Client{AuthClient: auth}
+
+			runWithDeadline(t, 10*time.Second, "sendRequest loop", func() error {
+				for i := 0; i < leakTestMaxConns*5; i++ {
+					resp, err := c.sendRequest(&request{
+						Method:   "GET",
+						Endpoint: "Leak/Test",
+						Headers:  &apiHeaders{},
+					})
+					if tc.wantErr {
+						if err == nil {
+							return fmt.Errorf("call %d: expected error for status %d", i, tc.status)
+						}
+						if strings.Contains(err.Error(), "context deadline") {
+							return fmt.Errorf("call %d: unexpected transport error: %w", i, err)
+						}
+						continue
+					}
+					if err != nil {
+						return fmt.Errorf("call %d: %w", i, err)
+					}
+					if tc.readsBody {
+						var v map[string]any
+						if dErr := json.NewDecoder(resp.Body).Decode(&v); dErr != nil {
+							return fmt.Errorf("call %d: decode: %w", i, dErr)
+						}
+						if v["ok"] != true {
+							return fmt.Errorf("call %d: wrong body %v", i, v)
+						}
+					}
+					// Callers may or may not Close; both must be safe.
+					if i%2 == 0 {
+						_ = resp.Body.Close()
+					}
+				}
+				return nil
+			})
+		})
+	}
+}