diff --git a/AppImage/scripts/auth_manager.py b/AppImage/scripts/auth_manager.py
index 5465d857..92f8c7e1 100644
--- a/AppImage/scripts/auth_manager.py
+++ b/AppImage/scripts/auth_manager.py
@@ -15,12 +15,22 @@ import secrets
 from datetime import datetime, timedelta
 from pathlib import Path
 
+# Try PyJWT first, fall back to our simple implementation
 try:
     import jwt
     JWT_AVAILABLE = True
+    JWT_BACKEND = "pyjwt"
 except ImportError:
-    JWT_AVAILABLE = False
-    print("Warning: PyJWT not available. Authentication features will be limited.")
+    try:
+        # Use our simple JWT implementation (no external dependencies)
+        import simple_jwt as jwt
+        JWT_AVAILABLE = True
+        JWT_BACKEND = "simple_jwt"
+        print("Using simple_jwt backend (no cryptography dependency)")
+    except ImportError:
+        JWT_AVAILABLE = False
+        JWT_BACKEND = None
+        print("Warning: No JWT backend available. Authentication features will be limited.")
 
 try:
     import pyotp
diff --git a/AppImage/scripts/build_appimage.sh b/AppImage/scripts/build_appimage.sh
index f6f878b0..0e2ca48c 100644
--- a/AppImage/scripts/build_appimage.sh
+++ b/AppImage/scripts/build_appimage.sh
@@ -81,6 +81,7 @@ cp "$SCRIPT_DIR/flask_server.py" "$APP_DIR/usr/bin/"
 cp "$SCRIPT_DIR/flask_auth_routes.py" "$APP_DIR/usr/bin/" 2>/dev/null || echo "⚠️  flask_auth_routes.py not found"
 cp "$SCRIPT_DIR/auth_manager.py" "$APP_DIR/usr/bin/" 2>/dev/null || echo "⚠️  auth_manager.py not found"
 cp "$SCRIPT_DIR/jwt_middleware.py" "$APP_DIR/usr/bin/" 2>/dev/null || echo "⚠️  jwt_middleware.py not found"
+cp "$SCRIPT_DIR/simple_jwt.py" "$APP_DIR/usr/bin/" 2>/dev/null || echo "⚠️  simple_jwt.py not found"
 cp "$SCRIPT_DIR/health_monitor.py" "$APP_DIR/usr/bin/" 2>/dev/null || echo "⚠️  health_monitor.py not found"
 cp "$SCRIPT_DIR/health_persistence.py" "$APP_DIR/usr/bin/" 2>/dev/null || echo "⚠️  health_persistence.py not found"
 cp "$SCRIPT_DIR/flask_health_routes.py" "$APP_DIR/usr/bin/" 2>/dev/null || echo "⚠️  flask_health_routes.py not found"
diff --git a/AppImage/scripts/flask_auth_routes.py b/AppImage/scripts/flask_auth_routes.py
index 14491c26..960ae34e 100644
--- a/AppImage/scripts/flask_auth_routes.py
+++ b/AppImage/scripts/flask_auth_routes.py
@@ -11,7 +11,13 @@ import threading
 import time
 from flask import Blueprint, jsonify, request
 import auth_manager
-import jwt
+
+# Try PyJWT first, fall back to our simple implementation
+try:
+    import jwt
+except ImportError:
+    import simple_jwt as jwt
+
 import datetime
 
 # Dedicated logger for auth failures (Fail2Ban reads this file)
diff --git a/AppImage/scripts/flask_server.py b/AppImage/scripts/flask_server.py
index 15f57832..6595fad9 100644
--- a/AppImage/scripts/flask_server.py
+++ b/AppImage/scripts/flask_server.py
@@ -29,7 +29,12 @@ from datetime import datetime, timedelta
 from functools import wraps
 from pathlib import Path
 
-import jwt
+# Try PyJWT first, fall back to our simple implementation (no cryptography dependency)
+try:
+    import jwt
+except ImportError:
+    import simple_jwt as jwt
+
 import psutil
 from flask import Flask, jsonify, request, send_file, send_from_directory, Response
 from flask_cors import CORS
diff --git a/AppImage/scripts/simple_jwt.py b/AppImage/scripts/simple_jwt.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..cfab77aa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/AppImage/scripts/simple_jwt.py
@@ -0,0 +1,136 @@
+"""
+Simple JWT Implementation
+A minimal JWT implementation using only Python standard library.
+Supports HS256 algorithm without requiring cryptography or PyJWT.
+This ensures compatibility across all Python versions and systems.
+"""
+
+import hmac
+import hashlib
+import base64
+import json
+import time
+from typing import Optional, Dict, Any
+
+
+class ExpiredSignatureError(Exception):
+    """Token has expired"""
+    pass
+
+
+class InvalidTokenError(Exception):
+    """Token is invalid"""
+    pass
+
+
+def _base64url_encode(data: bytes) -> str:
+    """Encode bytes to base64url string (no padding)"""
+    return base64.urlsafe_b64encode(data).rstrip(b'=').decode('utf-8')
+
+
+def _base64url_decode(data: str) -> bytes:
+    """Decode base64url string to bytes"""
+    # Add padding if needed
+    padding = 4 - len(data) % 4
+    if padding != 4:
+        data += '=' * padding
+    return base64.urlsafe_b64decode(data.encode('utf-8'))
+
+
+def encode(payload: Dict[str, Any], secret: str, algorithm: str = "HS256") -> str:
+    """
+    Encode a payload into a JWT token.
+    
+    Args:
+        payload: Dictionary containing the claims
+        secret: Secret key for signing
+        algorithm: Algorithm to use (only HS256 supported)
+    
+    Returns:
+        JWT token string
+    """
+    if algorithm != "HS256":
+        raise ValueError(f"Algorithm {algorithm} not supported. Only HS256 is available.")
+    
+    # Header
+    header = {"typ": "JWT", "alg": "HS256"}
+    header_b64 = _base64url_encode(json.dumps(header, separators=(',', ':')).encode('utf-8'))
+    
+    # Payload
+    payload_b64 = _base64url_encode(json.dumps(payload, separators=(',', ':')).encode('utf-8'))
+    
+    # Signature
+    message = f"{header_b64}.{payload_b64}"
+    signature = hmac.new(
+        secret.encode('utf-8'),
+        message.encode('utf-8'),
+        hashlib.sha256
+    ).digest()
+    signature_b64 = _base64url_encode(signature)
+    
+    return f"{header_b64}.{payload_b64}.{signature_b64}"
+
+
+def decode(token: str, secret: str, algorithms: list = None) -> Dict[str, Any]:
+    """
+    Decode and verify a JWT token.
+    
+    Args:
+        token: JWT token string
+        secret: Secret key for verification
+        algorithms: List of allowed algorithms (ignored, only HS256 supported)
+    
+    Returns:
+        Decoded payload dictionary
+    
+    Raises:
+        InvalidTokenError: If token is malformed or signature is invalid
+        ExpiredSignatureError: If token has expired
+    """
+    try:
+        parts = token.split('.')
+        if len(parts) != 3:
+            raise InvalidTokenError("Token must have 3 parts")
+        
+        header_b64, payload_b64, signature_b64 = parts
+        
+        # Verify signature
+        message = f"{header_b64}.{payload_b64}"
+        expected_signature = hmac.new(
+            secret.encode('utf-8'),
+            message.encode('utf-8'),
+            hashlib.sha256
+        ).digest()
+        
+        actual_signature = _base64url_decode(signature_b64)
+        
+        if not hmac.compare_digest(expected_signature, actual_signature):
+            raise InvalidTokenError("Signature verification failed")
+        
+        # Decode payload
+        payload = json.loads(_base64url_decode(payload_b64).decode('utf-8'))
+        
+        # Check expiration
+        if 'exp' in payload:
+            if time.time() > payload['exp']:
+                raise ExpiredSignatureError("Token has expired")
+        
+        return payload
+        
+    except (ValueError, KeyError, json.JSONDecodeError) as e:
+        raise InvalidTokenError(f"Invalid token format: {e}")
+
+
+# Compatibility aliases for PyJWT interface
+class PyJWTCompat:
+    """Compatibility class to mimic PyJWT interface"""
+    ExpiredSignatureError = ExpiredSignatureError
+    InvalidTokenError = InvalidTokenError
+    
+    @staticmethod
+    def encode(payload, secret, algorithm="HS256"):
+        return encode(payload, secret, algorithm)
+    
+    @staticmethod
+    def decode(token, secret, algorithms=None):
+        return decode(token, secret, algorithms)