diff --git a/internal/domain/user.go b/internal/domain/user.go
index 09b6f4a..872e52b 100644
--- a/internal/domain/user.go
+++ b/internal/domain/user.go
@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ type User struct {
 	WebAuthnCredentialList []UserWebauthnCredential `gorm:"foreignKey:user_identifier"` // the webauthn credentials of the user, used for webauthn authentication
 
 	// API token for REST API access
-	ApiToken        string `form:"api_token" binding:"omitempty"`
+	ApiToken        string `form:"api_token" binding:"omitempty" gorm:"serializer:encstr"`
 	ApiTokenCreated *time.Time
 
 	LinkedPeerCount int `gorm:"-"`