diff --git a/.github/scripts/check-pr-description.js b/.github/scripts/check-pr-description.js
index 2e60be574..d817d453a 100644
--- a/.github/scripts/check-pr-description.js
+++ b/.github/scripts/check-pr-description.js
@@ -96,7 +96,11 @@ module.exports = async ({ github, context, core }) => {
 
   const appRan = /- \[x\]\s+I actually ran the app\b/i.test(body);
   const appNotRun = /- \[x\]\s+I did not run the app\/runtime validation\b/i.test(body);
-  const screenshotChecked = /- \[x\]\s+\*\*Screenshot or short clip\*\*/i.test(body);
+  // Anchor on the wording, not the template's emphasis: a ticked box the author
+  // retyped without the surrounding ** renders identically on the PR page, so
+  // treating it as unchecked is invisible from their side. Matches the two
+  // attestations above, which already ignore formatting.
+  const screenshotChecked = /- \[x\]\s+[*_]{0,2}Screenshot or short clip[*_]{0,2}/i.test(body);
   const screenshotSection = section('Screenshots / clips');
   const hasVisualEvidence = /!\[[^\]]*\]\([^)]+\)|<(?:img|video|source)\b[^>]*(?:src|href)=|https?:\/\/[^\s)]+/i.test(screenshotSection);
   const evidenceGaps = [];
diff --git a/tests/test_pr_description_check.py b/tests/test_pr_description_check.py
index b8413b4d6..399095787 100644
--- a/tests/test_pr_description_check.py
+++ b/tests/test_pr_description_check.py
@@ -169,6 +169,20 @@ def test_ui_checkbox_without_media_still_needs_visual_evidence():
     assert not any(call["method"] == "setFailed" for call in calls)
 
 
+def test_ticked_screenshot_box_counts_without_the_template_bolding():
+    body = _body(
+        app_ran=True,
+        screenshot=True,
+        media="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/example",
+    ).replace("**Screenshot or short clip**", "Screenshot or short clip")
+
+    calls = _run_checker(["static/js/example.js"], body)
+
+    assert _added_labels(calls) == {"ready for review"}
+    assert not _comment(calls)
+    assert not any(call["method"] == "setFailed" for call in calls)
+
+
 def test_explicit_not_run_is_honest_but_not_ready():
     calls = _run_checker(
         ["services/example.py"],