diff --git a/cmd/ingestor/main.go b/cmd/ingestor/main.go
index fc3be6ad..47527cbb 100644
--- a/cmd/ingestor/main.go
+++ b/cmd/ingestor/main.go
@@ -364,11 +364,31 @@ func buildMQTTOpts(source MQTTSource) *mqtt.ClientOptions {
 	if tag == "" {
 		tag = source.Broker
 	}
+	// #1337: paho defaults silently throttle delivery on this broker.
+	//  - CleanSession=true + empty ClientID (random per reconnect) made the
+	//    broker treat every reconnect as a brand-new session and discard the
+	//    backlog it had queued since the previous disconnect. With watchdog
+	//    reconnects every ~5min on staging, this lost ~99% of messages.
+	//  - Order=true serialized the default publish handler; one slow packet
+	//    blocked all others, compounding the loss under bursts.
+	// Fix: persistent unique ClientID + CleanSession=false (broker keeps
+	// our subscription state across reconnects and forwards what we missed),
+	// explicit KeepAlive so half-open TCP is detected at the paho layer, and
+	// Order=false for parallel handler dispatch.
+	hostname, _ := os.Hostname()
+	if hostname == "" {
+		hostname = "unknown-host"
+	}
+	clientID := "corescope-ingestor-" + hostname + "-" + tag
+
 	opts := mqtt.NewClientOptions().
 		AddBroker(source.Broker).
+		SetClientID(clientID).
+		SetCleanSession(false).
+		SetKeepAlive(30 * time.Second).
+		SetOrderMatters(false).
 		SetAutoReconnect(true).
 		SetConnectRetry(true).
-		SetOrderMatters(true).
 		SetMaxReconnectInterval(30 * time.Second).
 		SetConnectTimeout(10 * time.Second).
 		SetWriteTimeout(10 * time.Second)
diff --git a/cmd/ingestor/mqtt_session_test.go b/cmd/ingestor/mqtt_session_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..6fb5fd9d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/ingestor/mqtt_session_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,85 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"os"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// Issue #1337: paho client misconfigured — ingestor receives 200× fewer
+// messages than mosquitto_sub on the same broker/creds/topics. Root cause
+// (hypothesis 1+5): paho defaults — CleanSession=true, empty ClientID
+// (auto-random per reconnect), Order=true (handler serialized) — combined
+// with the reconnect-every-5min watchdog meant the broker dropped queued
+// messages on every reconnect AND the handler couldn't keep up under load.
+//
+// These tests pin the four paho options that fix the gap:
+//   1. CleanSession=false       — broker keeps the subscription state across
+//                                  reconnects instead of treating each dial
+//                                  as a brand-new session.
+//   2. ClientID = persistent    — broker recognizes the returning session.
+//                                  Empty ClientID makes paho generate a fresh
+//                                  random one on every reconnect, which is
+//                                  treated as a new client by the broker.
+//   3. KeepAlive  = 30s         — half-open TCP detected at the paho layer
+//                                  instead of waiting for OS keepalive.
+//   4. Order = false            — handler dispatch is parallel; one slow
+//                                  packet does not block all the others.
+//
+// All four must be set in buildMQTTOpts. This test fails on master.
+
+func TestBuildMQTTOpts_PersistentSession_Issue1337(t *testing.T) {
+	source := MQTTSource{
+		Broker: "ssl://broker.example:8883",
+		Name:   "sjc-test",
+	}
+	opts := buildMQTTOpts(source)
+
+	if opts.CleanSession {
+		t.Error("CleanSession must be false (#1337): broker drops queued msgs across reconnects when true")
+	}
+
+	host, _ := os.Hostname()
+	if opts.ClientID == "" {
+		t.Fatal("ClientID must be set to a persistent value (#1337): empty = paho generates random per reconnect, broker treats every reconnect as new session")
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(opts.ClientID, "sjc-test") {
+		t.Errorf("ClientID must embed source name for uniqueness across sources, got %q", opts.ClientID)
+	}
+	if host != "" && !strings.Contains(opts.ClientID, host) {
+		t.Errorf("ClientID must embed hostname for uniqueness across deployments, got %q (host=%q)", opts.ClientID, host)
+	}
+
+	if opts.KeepAlive != int64((30 * time.Second).Seconds()) {
+		t.Errorf("KeepAlive must be 30s (#1337): got %ds — needed so paho detects half-open TCP", opts.KeepAlive)
+	}
+
+	if opts.Order {
+		t.Error("Order must be false (#1337): default true serializes handler dispatch; a slow packet stalls all others")
+	}
+}
+
+// Stability: ClientID must be deterministic for a given (hostname, source)
+// across two builds. Otherwise reconnect = new session = lost backlog.
+func TestBuildMQTTOpts_ClientIDStableAcrossBuilds_Issue1337(t *testing.T) {
+	source := MQTTSource{Broker: "ssl://broker.example:8883", Name: "stable-test"}
+	a := buildMQTTOpts(source).ClientID
+	b := buildMQTTOpts(source).ClientID
+	if a == "" {
+		t.Fatal("ClientID empty")
+	}
+	if a != b {
+		t.Errorf("ClientID must be stable across buildMQTTOpts calls (#1337): %q vs %q — random = broker drops session on reconnect", a, b)
+	}
+}
+
+// Distinct sources must NOT share a ClientID — broker disconnects the older
+// session whenever a duplicate ClientID connects, causing flapping.
+func TestBuildMQTTOpts_ClientIDUniquePerSource_Issue1337(t *testing.T) {
+	a := buildMQTTOpts(MQTTSource{Broker: "ssl://a:8883", Name: "alpha"}).ClientID
+	b := buildMQTTOpts(MQTTSource{Broker: "ssl://b:8883", Name: "beta"}).ClientID
+	if a == b {
+		t.Errorf("distinct sources must get distinct ClientIDs (#1337): both got %q — duplicate IDs cause broker to disconnect the older one, infinite flap", a)
+	}
+}