diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 0f938004..08e2d4c4 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -419,14 +419,17 @@ int main() {
     // otherwise the result may be unusable.
     // The 'roaring_bitmap_portable_deserialize_safe' function will not read
     // beyond expectedsize bytes.
-    // We recommend you further use checksums to make sure that the input is from
-    // serialized data.
+    // We also recommend that you use checksums to check that serialized data corresponds
+    // to the serialized bitmap. The CRoaring library does not provide checksumming.
     roaring_bitmap_t *t = roaring_bitmap_portable_deserialize_safe(serializedbytes, expectedsize);
     if(t == NULL) { return EXIT_FAILURE; }
     const char *reason = NULL;
+    // If your input came from an untrusted source, then you need to validate the
+    // resulting bitmap. Failing to do so could lead to undefined behavior, crashes and so forth.
     if (!roaring_bitmap_internal_validate(t, &reason)) {
         return EXIT_FAILURE;
     }
+    // At this point, the bitmap is safe.
     assert(roaring_bitmap_equals(r1, t));  // what we recover is equal
     roaring_bitmap_free(t);
     // we can also check whether there is a bitmap at a memory location without
@@ -438,8 +441,8 @@ int main() {
     // We can also read the bitmap "safely" by specifying a byte size limit.
     // The 'roaring_bitmap_portable_deserialize_safe' function will not read
     // beyond expectedsize bytes.
-    // We recommend you further use checksums to make sure that the input is from
-    // serialized data.
+    // We also recommend that you use checksums to check that serialized data corresponds
+    // to the serialized bitmap. The CRoaring library does not provide checksumming.
     t = roaring_bitmap_portable_deserialize_safe(serializedbytes, expectedsize);
     if(t == NULL) {
         printf("Problem during deserialization.\n");
@@ -447,15 +450,14 @@ int main() {
         return EXIT_FAILURE;
     }
     // We can validate the bitmap we recovered to make sure it is proper.
+    // If the data came from an untrusted source, you should call
+    // roaring_bitmap_internal_validate.
     const char *reason_failure = NULL;
     if (!roaring_bitmap_internal_validate(t, &reason_failure)) {
         printf("safely deserialized invalid bitmap: %s\n", reason_failure);
         // We could clear any memory and close any file here.
         return EXIT_FAILURE;
     }
-    // It is still necessary for the content of seriallizedbytes to follow
-    // the standard: https://github.com/RoaringBitmap/RoaringFormatSpec
-    // This is guaranted when calling 'roaring_bitmap_portable_deserialize'.
     assert(roaring_bitmap_equals(r1, t));  // what we recover is equal
     roaring_bitmap_free(t);
 
diff --git a/include/roaring/roaring.h b/include/roaring/roaring.h
index 7880e3f3..61436ebd 100644
--- a/include/roaring/roaring.h
+++ b/include/roaring/roaring.h
@@ -649,11 +649,14 @@ roaring_bitmap_t *roaring_bitmap_portable_deserialize(const char *buf);
  * order. This is is guaranteed to happen when serializing an existing bitmap,
  * but not for random inputs.
  *
- * You may use roaring_bitmap_internal_validate to check the validity of the
- * bitmap prior to using it.
- *
- * We recommend that you use checksums to check that serialized data corresponds
- * to a serialized bitmap.
+ * If the source is untrusted, you should call
+ * roaring_bitmap_internal_validate to check the validity of the
+ * bitmap prior to using it. Only after calling roaring_bitmap_internal_validate
+ * is the bitmap considered safe for use.
+ *
+ * We also recommend that you use checksums to check that serialized data
+ * corresponds to the serialized bitmap. The CRoaring library does not provide
+ * checksumming.
  *
  * This function is endian-sensitive. If you have a big-endian system (e.g., a
  * mainframe IBM s390x), the data format is going to be big-endian and not
diff --git a/include/roaring/roaring64.h b/include/roaring/roaring64.h
index c1f574d6..8022f160 100644
--- a/include/roaring/roaring64.h
+++ b/include/roaring/roaring64.h
@@ -548,11 +548,14 @@ size_t roaring64_bitmap_portable_deserialize_size(const char *buf,
  * order. This is is guaranteed to happen when serializing an existing bitmap,
  * but not for random inputs.
  *
- * You may use roaring64_bitmap_internal_validate to check the validity of the
- * bitmap prior to using it.
- *
- * We recommend that you use checksums to check that serialized data corresponds
- * to a serialized bitmap.
+ * If the source is untrusted, you should call
+ * roaring64_bitmap_internal_validate to check the validity of the
+ * bitmap prior to using it. Only after calling
+ * roaring64_bitmap_internal_validate is the bitmap considered safe for use.
+ *
+ * We also recommend that you use checksums to check that serialized data
+ * corresponds to the serialized bitmap. The CRoaring library does not provide
+ * checksumming.
  *
  * This function is endian-sensitive. If you have a big-endian system (e.g., a
  * mainframe IBM s390x), the data format is going to be big-endian and not