diff --git a/graphify/extract.py b/graphify/extract.py
index 9242105ec..8064e9150 100644
--- a/graphify/extract.py
+++ b/graphify/extract.py
@@ -3465,7 +3465,11 @@ _LANGUAGE_BUILTIN_BASE_CLASSES_CI: dict[str, frozenset[str]] = {
 
 def _node_label_key(node: dict, fold: bool = False) -> str:
     label = str(node.get("label", "")).strip()
-    key = re.sub(r"[^a-zA-Z0-9]+", "", label)
+    # Keep underscores: they are significant identifier characters, so a private
+    # `_Response` must not share a key with an external `Response` and absorb its
+    # reference during stub rewiring (#4269). Only drop call/generic punctuation
+    # (`()`, `<>`, `.`, whitespace) so `Foo()` and `Foo` still match.
+    key = re.sub(r"[^a-zA-Z0-9_]+", "", label)
     return key.lower() if fold else key
 
 
diff --git a/tests/test_qualified_annotation_stub_bind.py b/tests/test_qualified_annotation_stub_bind.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..43f23277c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_qualified_annotation_stub_bind.py
@@ -0,0 +1,75 @@
+"""Regression for #4269: a qualified external annotation must not bind to an
+unrelated private local class through the stub-rewire underscore collision.
+
+`def read_body(response: httpx.Response)` names an external type. A private
+`class _Response` defined in a test file used to absorb that reference because
+the stub-rewire key stripped the leading underscore, making `_Response` and
+`Response` compare equal. The result was a fabricated, EXTRACTED-confidence
+edge from production code to test code.
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+from pathlib import Path
+
+from graphify.build import build_from_json
+from graphify.extract import extract
+
+
+def _edge_set(G):
+    return {
+        (d.get("relation"), d.get("_src", u), d.get("_tgt", v))
+        for u, v, d in G.edges(data=True)
+    }
+
+
+def test_qualified_annotation_does_not_bind_to_private_local_class(tmp_path: Path) -> None:
+    (tmp_path / "app").mkdir()
+    (tmp_path / "tests").mkdir()
+    (tmp_path / "app" / "client.py").write_text(
+        "import httpx\n\n\n"
+        "def read_body(response: httpx.Response) -> bytes:\n"
+        "    return response.content\n",
+        encoding="utf-8",
+    )
+    (tmp_path / "tests" / "test_fake.py").write_text(
+        "class _Response:\n"
+        '    """Stand-in for a urllib response."""\n\n'
+        "    def read(self):\n"
+        '        return b""\n',
+        encoding="utf-8",
+    )
+
+    paths = [tmp_path / "app" / "client.py", tmp_path / "tests" / "test_fake.py"]
+    res = extract(paths, root=tmp_path, parallel=False, cache_root=tmp_path / "graphify-cache")
+    G = build_from_json(res, root=str(tmp_path), directed=True)
+    edges = _edge_set(G)
+
+    # The fabricated production -> test edge must be gone.
+    assert ("references", "app_client_read_body", "tests_test_fake_response") not in edges, (
+        f"httpx.Response annotation falsely bound to the private local _Response: {edges}"
+    )
+    # The private class must still exist as its own node, untouched.
+    assert "tests_test_fake_response" in G
+
+
+def test_bare_underscore_class_does_not_absorb_sibling_reference(tmp_path: Path) -> None:
+    """Minimal rewire control: a sourceless `Thing` reference must not rewire to a
+    located `_Thing`; underscores are identifier-significant."""
+    (tmp_path / "producer.py").write_text(
+        "import external\n\n\n"
+        "def build(x: external.Thing) -> None:\n"
+        "    return None\n",
+        encoding="utf-8",
+    )
+    (tmp_path / "private.py").write_text(
+        "class _Thing:\n"
+        "    pass\n",
+        encoding="utf-8",
+    )
+    paths = [tmp_path / "producer.py", tmp_path / "private.py"]
+    res = extract(paths, root=tmp_path, parallel=False, cache_root=tmp_path / "graphify-cache")
+    G = build_from_json(res, root=str(tmp_path), directed=True)
+    edges = _edge_set(G)
+    assert ("references", "producer_build", "private_thing") not in edges, (
+        f"`external.Thing` reference falsely absorbed by the private `_Thing`: {edges}"
+    )