diff --git a/filters/filter.go b/filters/filter.go
index 1cfe4dd..e5ca076 100644
--- a/filters/filter.go
+++ b/filters/filter.go
@@ -249,36 +249,37 @@ func (f *Filter) UnmarshalJSON(data []byte) error {
 // Matches returns true if the event satisfies all filter conditions.
 // Supports prefix matching for IDs and authors, and tag filtering.
 // Does not account for custom extensions.
-func Matches(f Filter, event events.Event) bool {
+func Matches(f Filter, event events.ValidatedEvent) bool {
 	// Check ID
 	if len(f.IDs) > 0 {
-		if !matchesPrefix(event.ID, f.IDs) {
+		if !matchesPrefix(event.ID(), f.IDs) {
 			return false
 		}
 	}
 
 	// Check Author
 	if len(f.Authors) > 0 {
-		if !matchesPrefix(event.PubKey, f.Authors) {
+		if !matchesPrefix(event.PubKey(), f.Authors) {
 			return false
 		}
 	}
 
 	// Check Kind
 	if len(f.Kinds) > 0 {
-		if !matchesKinds(event.Kind, f.Kinds) {
+		if !matchesKinds(event.Kind(), f.Kinds) {
 			return false
 		}
 	}
 
 	// Check Timestamp
-	if !matchesTimeRange(event.CreatedAt, f.Since, f.Until) {
+	if !matchesTimeRange(event.CreatedAt(), f.Since, f.Until) {
 		return false
 	}
 
 	// Check Tags
 	if len(f.Tags) > 0 {
-		if !matchesTags(event.Tags, &f.Tags) {
+		tags := event.Tags()
+		if !matchesTags(tags, &f.Tags) {
 			return false
 		}
 	}
diff --git a/filters/filter_match_test.go b/filters/filter_match_test.go
index ea9e2e5..7e93915 100644
--- a/filters/filter_match_test.go
+++ b/filters/filter_match_test.go
@@ -8,16 +8,24 @@ import (
 	"testing"
 )
 
-var testEvents []events.Event
+var testEvents []events.ValidatedEvent
 
 func init() {
 	data, err := os.ReadFile("testdata/test_events.json")
 	if err != nil {
 		panic(err)
 	}
-	if err := json.Unmarshal(data, &testEvents); err != nil {
+	var raw []events.Event
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(data, &raw); err != nil {
 		panic(err)
 	}
+	for _, e := range raw {
+		ve, err := events.NewValidatedEvent(e)
+		if err != nil {
+			panic(err)
+		}
+		testEvents = append(testEvents, ve)
+	}
 }
 
 // Test keypairs corresponding to test events, for reference.
@@ -42,7 +50,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 		filter: NewFilter(),
 		expectedIDs: []string{
 			"e751d41f",
-			"562bc378",
+			"2e06c187",
 			"e67fa7b8",
 			"5e4c64f1",
 			"7a5d83d4",
@@ -58,7 +66,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 		filter: NewFilter(WithIDs([]string{})),
 		expectedIDs: []string{
 			"e751d41f",
-			"562bc378",
+			"2e06c187",
 			"e67fa7b8",
 			"5e4c64f1",
 			"7a5d83d4",
@@ -86,8 +94,8 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 
 	{
 		name:        "multiple id prefixes",
-		filter:      NewFilter(WithIDs([]string{"562bc378", "5e4c64f1"})),
-		expectedIDs: []string{"562bc378", "5e4c64f1"},
+		filter:      NewFilter(WithIDs([]string{"2e06c187", "5e4c64f1"})),
+		expectedIDs: []string{"2e06c187", "5e4c64f1"},
 	},
 
 	{
@@ -101,7 +109,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 		filter: NewFilter(WithAuthors([]string{})),
 		expectedIDs: []string{
 			"e751d41f",
-			"562bc378",
+			"2e06c187",
 			"e67fa7b8",
 			"5e4c64f1",
 			"7a5d83d4",
@@ -115,7 +123,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 	{
 		name:        "single author prefix",
 		filter:      NewFilter(WithAuthors([]string{"d877e187"})),
-		expectedIDs: []string{"e751d41f", "562bc378", "e67fa7b8"},
+		expectedIDs: []string{"e751d41f", "2e06c187", "e67fa7b8"},
 	},
 
 	{
@@ -123,7 +131,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 		filter: NewFilter(WithAuthors([]string{"d877e187", "9e4b726a"})),
 		expectedIDs: []string{
 			"e751d41f",
-			"562bc378",
+			"2e06c187",
 			"e67fa7b8",
 			"5e4c64f1",
 			"7a5d83d4",
@@ -137,7 +145,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 			WithAuthors([]string{
 				"d877e187934bd942a71221b50ff2b426bd0777991b41b6c749119805dc40bcbe"}),
 		),
-		expectedIDs: []string{"e751d41f", "562bc378", "e67fa7b8"},
+		expectedIDs: []string{"e751d41f", "2e06c187", "e67fa7b8"},
 	},
 
 	{
@@ -151,7 +159,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 		filter: NewFilter(WithKinds([]int{})),
 		expectedIDs: []string{
 			"e751d41f",
-			"562bc378",
+			"2e06c187",
 			"e67fa7b8",
 			"5e4c64f1",
 			"7a5d83d4",
@@ -165,7 +173,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 	{
 		name:        "single kind",
 		filter:      NewFilter(WithKinds([]int{1})),
-		expectedIDs: []string{"562bc378", "7a5d83d4", "4b03b69a"},
+		expectedIDs: []string{"2e06c187", "7a5d83d4", "4b03b69a"},
 	},
 
 	{
@@ -204,7 +212,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 		filter: NewFilter(WithUntil(3000)),
 		expectedIDs: []string{
 			"e751d41f",
-			"562bc378",
+			"2e06c187",
 			"e67fa7b8",
 		},
 	},
@@ -230,7 +238,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 		filter: NewFilter(WithTag("e", []string{})),
 		expectedIDs: []string{
 			"e751d41f",
-			"562bc378",
+			"2e06c187",
 			"e67fa7b8",
 			"5e4c64f1",
 			"7a5d83d4",
@@ -247,7 +255,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 			WithTag("e", []string{
 				"5c83da77af1dec6d7289834998ad7aafbd9e2191396d75ec3cc27f5a77226f36"}),
 		),
-		expectedIDs: []string{"562bc378"},
+		expectedIDs: []string{"2e06c187"},
 	},
 
 	{
@@ -258,7 +266,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 				"ae3f2a91b6c3d8f7e9a1c5b4d8f2e7a9b6c3d8f7e9a1c5b4d8f2e7a9b6c3d8f7",
 			}),
 		),
-		expectedIDs: []string{"562bc378", "3a122100"},
+		expectedIDs: []string{"2e06c187", "3a122100"},
 	},
 
 	{
@@ -269,7 +277,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 				"cb7787c460a79187d6a13e75a0f19240e05fafca8ea42288f5765773ea69cf2f",
 			}),
 		),
-		expectedIDs: []string{"562bc378"},
+		expectedIDs: []string{"2e06c187"},
 	},
 
 	{
@@ -323,7 +331,7 @@ var filterTestCases = []FilterTestCase{
 			WithKinds([]int{1, 2}),
 		),
 		expectedIDs: []string{
-			"562bc378",
+			"2e06c187",
 			"e67fa7b8",
 		},
 	},
@@ -373,7 +381,7 @@ func TestEventFilterMatching(t *testing.T) {
 			actualIDs := []string{}
 			for _, event := range testEvents {
 				if Matches(tc.filter, event) {
-					actualIDs = append(actualIDs, event.ID[:8])
+					actualIDs = append(actualIDs, event.ID()[:8])
 				}
 			}
 
@@ -381,17 +389,3 @@ func TestEventFilterMatching(t *testing.T) {
 		})
 	}
 }
-
-// TestEventFilterMatchingSkipMalformedTags documents that filter.Matches()
-// skips malformed tags during tag matching
-func TestEventFilterMatchingSkipMalformedTags(t *testing.T) {
-	event := events.NewEvent(
-		events.WithTag(events.Tag{"malformed"}),
-		events.WithTag(events.Tag{"valid", "value"}),
-	)
-	filter := NewFilter(
-		WithTag("valid", []string{"value"}),
-	)
-
-	assert.True(t, Matches(filter, event))
-}
diff --git a/filters/testdata/test_events.json b/filters/testdata/test_events.json
index afc1f37..89e52fe 100644
--- a/filters/testdata/test_events.json
+++ b/filters/testdata/test_events.json
@@ -1,18 +1,18 @@
 [
   {
-    "kind": 0,
     "id": "e751d41fa31e3a115634b41fb587cbd8270d10333a6d5330b1de24737448de70",
     "pubkey": "d877e187934bd942a71221b50ff2b426bd0777991b41b6c749119805dc40bcbe",
     "created_at": 1000,
-    "tags": [],
+    "kind": 0,
+    "tags": null,
     "content": "Nayru profile",
     "sig": "b3ba1ef2b4143e8c2fabc66bfd26839d6f3a14b5f8d24a8b96ce9c1aa41a53536444be61ed3e502cbeb04d34f8b893c84fa40bac408878c57ee4054d629c1452"
   },
   {
-    "kind": 1,
-    "id": "562bc378fc1a254b053b0cc1b8d61afec8e931ba79f0110ba9dd617496260758",
+    "id": "2e06c18793abeb368ffadecce7de8a3c5a50857907c91dc8b9f6b5f2f7b44a28",
     "pubkey": "d877e187934bd942a71221b50ff2b426bd0777991b41b6c749119805dc40bcbe",
     "created_at": 2000,
+    "kind": 1,
     "tags": [
       [
         "e",
@@ -24,13 +24,13 @@
       ]
     ],
     "content": "Hello from Nayru",
-    "sig": "18e48bf6be4e4104f95bfe90bd61e33c3d8cc5bf3e776ba8182fafe3f84b2e4ef6ce10256865cce556016e1b14ebad3079d3d0a3afcb0f690f12fa01e8f64201"
+    "sig": "5d90570e0dbf3cd8a9c44c5b25b03cf0005d9d3d79d17b43de39144343858b1a21cef22f07ac95ba9770ec39a87f428d860521ee9b7e1b33b973947382bed5bb"
   },
   {
-    "kind": 2,
     "id": "e67fa7b84df6b0bb4c57f8719149de77f58955d7849da1be10b2267c72daad8b",
     "pubkey": "d877e187934bd942a71221b50ff2b426bd0777991b41b6c749119805dc40bcbe",
     "created_at": 3000,
+    "kind": 2,
     "tags": [
       [
         "emoji",
@@ -45,10 +45,10 @@
     "sig": "00e2c74374670b7623b793ddf4e9903ace17be621bbad74b808232eec1473271fa3e3d5e4ad01100f6c48bf36baa4e4dbaa012cd5ff060b644caac4e9a9c6b1e"
   },
   {
-    "kind": 0,
     "id": "5e4c64f15a1ad510409e5cb3dc519dcde5416fbb8621bf65559f6b98f729a0d4",
     "pubkey": "9e4b726ab0f25af580bdd2fd504fb245cf604f1fbc2482b89cf74beb4fb3aca9",
     "created_at": 4000,
+    "kind": 0,
     "tags": [
       [
         "website",
@@ -59,19 +59,19 @@
     "sig": "6998b03fba4787ca6a44c4042143592bb9670ded905c06c1b258a7c1630666d7b033b7f5586f7a64ed92e912b555193112e8a590326f38809c46fe104907823e"
   },
   {
-    "kind": 1,
     "id": "7a5d83d475576963f81e21d67208d6cf90c42b6a0c3a642c100a3571c5c96b68",
     "pubkey": "9e4b726ab0f25af580bdd2fd504fb245cf604f1fbc2482b89cf74beb4fb3aca9",
     "created_at": 5000,
-    "tags": [],
+    "kind": 1,
+    "tags": null,
     "content": "Farore's message",
     "sig": "e9f4986264c7eb7800b7a7d0e0de2928242cb4e93f8ba099fc1564b893dd7a77d2277dc3e8b67724c3887ccadbf14a656c80a229107eb2b5a44a20a00bc436d6"
   },
   {
-    "kind": 2,
     "id": "3a122100196b065ec6c5e1e75dd5140eeb292ef96d2acd56354eb8c23c47649a",
     "pubkey": "9e4b726ab0f25af580bdd2fd504fb245cf604f1fbc2482b89cf74beb4fb3aca9",
     "created_at": 6000,
+    "kind": 2,
     "tags": [
       [
         "category",
@@ -91,10 +91,10 @@
     "sig": "1f5ccdd14b1313a39b6fabfc85a3535ba4f10ad99067803804c9478d63ef2cf53723fcee7041fcbaad4f846d4500183e92305d59b3e6ccb504ce291ad7f982e2"
   },
   {
-    "kind": 0,
     "id": "4a15d963de8d26e8c4377e17fcf6daec499c454338951716a7d14cae1f7be835",
     "pubkey": "e719e8f83b77a9efacb29fd19118b030cbf7cfbca1f8d3694235707ee213abc7",
     "created_at": 7000,
+    "kind": 0,
     "tags": [
       [
         "location",
@@ -109,10 +109,10 @@
     "sig": "5a731404105aee9a04bd4d05024cb994a8d500edfceaeb83773438a70d376e6bb638e82e70380558f66aa078ab01f5c4ca86d8c37d291aafb7e33da053c856a9"
   },
   {
-    "kind": 1,
     "id": "4b03b69a7e89796e1021ad3b7f914e6868a6e900b5e6edfa09d9019a05898ed3",
     "pubkey": "e719e8f83b77a9efacb29fd19118b030cbf7cfbca1f8d3694235707ee213abc7",
     "created_at": 8000,
+    "kind": 1,
     "tags": [
       [
         "e",
@@ -123,12 +123,12 @@
     "sig": "7330fd35e0be4a2a64a940a2841474f60b15d5dec9d4c4129905d97bd91cc8e6a97eec66091580b7351a807b7c250544cf500d0e2d47f5744387b1ce4ac49c4d"
   },
   {
-    "kind": 2,
     "id": "d39e6f3f593bd754a45a6e2f77b1b0669cdfe89c19fb2a4b252ea095caa9874b",
     "pubkey": "e719e8f83b77a9efacb29fd19118b030cbf7cfbca1f8d3694235707ee213abc7",
     "created_at": 9000,
-    "tags": [],
+    "kind": 2,
+    "tags": null,
     "content": "Final event",
     "sig": "917d3fa8111cd9dfdc9acad121e7f71e4358d6a4eb0979eadc744b55f78d2647bf839282f6c10afacd64798007c3ef09b8a925c9b73f97c5219098eca1bacc4d"
   }
-]
+]
\ No newline at end of file