Validation Framework & Readiness Report
Internal validation completed. External validation framework designed and reproducible by independent third parties.
Status: Internal validation (Phase 8A) completed by system designers. External validation (Phase 8B) is designed, documented, and reproducible without vendor involvement.
Evidence Location: All validation artifacts, protocols, tools, and reproduction instructions are documented below.
Validation Framework Scope
The Pixsols validation framework tests specific, testable claims about system behavior. Each claim is designed to be tested independently without assumption of correctness.
Claims Subject to Validation
- Gate-Before-Effect: Decision receipts are written to disk before any external action. Testable by comparing decision and outcome timestamps.
- Fail-Closed Behavior: System denies operations on any ambiguity, failure, or missing evidence. Testable by triggering denial conditions.
- Tamper Detection: Receipt modifications are detected during verification. Testable by modifying receipts and confirming detection.
- Offline Verification: Receipts can be verified without network access after evidence bundle obtained. Testable by disconnecting network during verification.
- Artifact Integrity: Output files are cryptographically bound to receipts. Testable by checking artifact hashes against receipt references.
- Vendor Independence: No Pixsols credentials or vendor access required for verification. Testable by independent validators using only public tools.
- Long-Term Verifiability: Receipts remain valid indefinitely. Testable by re-verifying historical receipts without time-based dependencies.
Internal Validation Status (Phase 8A)
Completed: All claims above were tested internally by system designers and operators. Results confirm that the system behaves as documented under test conditions.
Evidence: See examples/public-trust-demo/ for sample receipts demonstrating expected behavior for each claim.
Validation Framework Roles
The validation framework is designed to be executed by individuals with relevant expertise across security, infrastructure, and audit domains. Validators would be selected for technical capability, not endorsement value.
Internal Validation (Phase 8A - Completed)
- Security Engineers: Tested cryptographic receipt integrity, tamper detection, and fail-closed behavior within internal team.
- Infrastructure Engineers: Tested offline verification, self-hosted deployment, and vendor independence within internal team.
- Compliance Specialists: Tested evidence packaging, audit trails, and regulatory mapping within internal team.
External Validation Roles (Phase 8B - Designed, Not Yet Executed)
The external validation protocol is designed for the following types of independent validators:
- Third-Party Auditors: Independent audit firms would test verification protocols without vendor assistance.
- Skeptical Engineers: Engineers with no prior Pixsols exposure would attempt to identify claims that cannot be verified.
- Self-Hosted Operators: Teams deploying Pixsols on their own infrastructure would test customer sovereignty claims.
Current Status: The external validation protocol is fully documented and reproducible. No external validators have been recruited or engaged at this time. Independent validation can be performed by any qualified party using public tools and documentation.
Validation Protocol Design
The validation framework follows a structured protocol designed to eliminate vendor bias and ensure third-party reproducibility.
Designed Validation Protocol (Phase 8B)
Independent validators would follow this protocol:
- Evidence Acquisition: Validators obtain evidence bundles via public releases or direct repository access (no private briefings).
- Claim Testing: Each claim is tested independently using documented commands and expected outcomes.
- Tamper Testing: Validators modify receipts to confirm detection mechanisms function as claimed.
- Offline Testing: Network connectivity is disabled to confirm verification independence.
- Documentation Review: Validators assess whether documentation accurately describes system behavior.
- Confusion Logging: Any confusion points, unclear instructions, or discrepancies are documented for remediation.
Success Criteria
External validation would be considered successful when:
- ≥80% of validators complete all tasks without vendor assistance (Phase 8B target)
- 100% of offline verification attempts succeed
- 0 constitutional invariant violations detected
- ≥70% positive trust impact reported
Internal Validation Results (Phase 8A)
Internal testing by system designers confirmed that all protocols, tools, and documentation function as designed. These results validate the framework design but do not constitute independent third-party validation.
Protocol Documentation: Full validation protocol documented in PHASE_8B_EXTERNAL_VALIDATION_PLAN.md
Validation Artifacts & Reproduction
All validation tasks can be reproduced independently using public documentation and tools. No vendor involvement or credentials required.
Offline Verification
Verification can be performed without network access:
node pixsols-verify.cjs receipts/{tenant}/op_{id}/
No Pixsols credentials required. No network dependency. Works indefinitely.