v0.3: The Evaluation Contract

Universal Manifest v0.3 is the first version that defines the full evaluation sequence: what happens when a manifest arrives, how the evaluator processes it, and what the receipt must record.

What changed from v0.2

v0.2 defined the envelope structure and signature mechanics. v0.3 adds the capabilities that make the system auditable and bilateral.

The evaluation contract. The spec now defines what a conformant evaluator must do at each stage of the evaluation sequence. An evaluator that skips a check must say so on the receipt. Silent acceptance of unverified claims is a conformance violation.

The evaluation sequence. Six stages run in order: Arrive, Verify, Project, Consent, Compose, Receipt. Every manifest evaluation follows this path. The sequence is the same whether the evaluator is a bank, a social platform, or a door lock.

Selective disclosure. The issuer controls what subset of the manifest travels to a given evaluator. A hospital gets clinical data. A bouncer gets proof of age. A hotel gets enough to check you in but no scan of your passport to keep. The issuer decides; the evaluator’s receipt proves what it received.

Sealed entries. Encrypted facets that a given evaluator cannot decrypt are recorded as present-but-sealed. An evaluator cannot pretend a sealed entry is absent. The receipt stays honest when partial visibility is the norm.

Bilateral exchange. Both parties present manifests, both run the evaluation sequence. The exchange is symmetric. Neither side is a passive recipient.

Controls and assurances

v0.3 organizes the system’s guarantees into two groups:

• Controls: Selective disclosure and consent. Active mechanisms governing what data flows and under what terms.
• Assurances: Sealed entries and authenticity. Properties the receipt records to prove the evaluation was honest.

What this means for implementers

If you are building an evaluator, v0.3 gives you the conformance target: the six evaluation stages, the field statuses, and the receipt schema. If your evaluator runs all six stages and writes an honest receipt, it conforms.

If you are building an issuer, the selective disclosure rules are explicit: you control what subset travels, and the evaluator’s receipt proves what it saw.

The conformance suite exercises every behavior against real fixtures. Implementations at peers.social and peermesh.org are running the v0.3 evaluation contract in production.

Adopter guidance

v0.3 is usable today for pilots, internal tools, and research integrations. The evaluation contract may change between versions as the working group refines it. Build on it, test against it, and report what you learn.

Read the full specification. See the roadmap for what gates v0.4.