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HOW VERIFICATION WORKS

A record you can check
without trusting us.

Most “verified” badges mean a company looked and said yes. Ours means the question was sealed before the evidence, the verdict can be replayed, and the chain is anchored where we can't touch it.

Verify a recordSee a real receipt

RECEIPT · 21 ENTRIES

CHAIN VERIFIES
0002Criteria sealed · 6 lines
0008Capture · sprint2-demo.mp4
0010Verdict · met · vision-referee · 6 frames cited
0012Refused · modality-cannot-establish
0013Capture · k6-load-report.html
0018Client approved
0019Released · $9,500 · chain recomputed first

CHAIN HEAD · ANCHORED

53518f1d…6c5d · public ledger

EIGHT MECHANISMS, ONE CHAIN

In the order the record is built

Each entry is hash-linked to the one before it. Nothing can be judged against evidence that came later. Open any step for what you can check yourself.

01Criteria sealed first

Every criterion must name an observable outcome and the proof that settles it. The set is hashed and sealed before any evidence exists.

WHAT YOU CAN CHECK

The criteria seal has a lower sequence number than every capture after it.

CRITERIA-LOCKED · seq 0002

6 lines · provable

sha256 6c85…1b9b

no evidence yet

02Capture bound to its criterion

Each photo, reading, or demo is signed on the device, addressed to one criterion, and stamped against that criterion's capture window. Late or misaddressed is sealed as exactly that.

WHAT YOU CAN CHECK

Every capture shows its device signature, its criterion, and whether it landed in the window.

CAPTURE · seq 0007

line 3 · window 07:30–08:15

signed on device · 07:41

seq 0011 — capture-window-missed

03The referee's question is sealed

The referee sees a fixed bundle: criterion, evidence, instruction. It is hashed before the model runs, and the verdict cites the frames it relied on.

WHAT YOU CAN CHECK

Replay the same bundle and you get the same hash.

VERDICT · seq 0010

question sealed · 1f58…0d88

line 1 — met · 6 frames cited

replay matches

04When unsure, it refuses

"Not assessed" is never a pass. If the evidence can't settle a criterion, the referee says so with a code from a published register, and the milestone waits.

WHAT YOU CAN CHECK

Every refusal is a sealed entry with a code you can look up.

REFUSAL · seq 0012

line 3 — not assessed

modality-cannot-establish · v6

asks for a load-test report instead

05One chain, re-verified before release

Every entry is hash-linked to the one before it. A release fires only if the whole chain still recomputes; if any byte changed, the money holds.

WHAT YOU CAN CHECK

Recompute the chain from entry one. If it matches the head, nothing was altered.

RELEASE CHECK · seq 0019

19 entries · recomputed

head fe6f…1ca5 = anchored

release signed

06Anchored on a public ledger

The chain head is written to a public ledger Northn doesn't control. Only the digest travels — no content, names, amounts, or media.

WHAT YOU CAN CHECK

Find your receipt's chain head in the public anchor. No need to ask us.

ANCHOR · public ledger

digest fe6f…1ca5 · published

no content leaves

northn.dev/verify

07Rules ship as editions

The criteria grammar, refusal register, and capture policies are versioned and anchored. A rule change is a new edition, never a silent edit.

WHAT YOU CAN CHECK

Every verdict names the edition it was ruled under.

RULEBOOK · edition

criteria grammar · ed. 2026-07

refusal register · v6

edition digest anchored

08Some verdicts need no model

A reading against a tolerance band is settled by arithmetic on the record. A unit the criterion didn't name goes to a person, never a conversion. AI agents leave an execution trace with the same seal.

WHAT YOU CAN CHECK

Band, reading, comparison — all on the seal. Recompute it yourself.

READING · no model

band 380–420 cfm · read 402.5

holds — by arithmetic

psi vs kPa — sent to a person

ONE RECORD, END TO END

What a receipt actually looks like

A $9,500 software milestone with six criteria. Every hash below recomputes.

  1. LEFT

    The chain — 21 entries in order

    1 refusal, one release. Amber is a hold.

  2. RIGHT

    The receipt for the chain head

    Root, signature and the public anchor it was written to.

  3. CHECK

    Recompute it in your browser

    Paste the JSON on /verify or download it and run your own.

THE CHAIN · 21 ENTRIES

Sprint 2 — Payments API

Meridian Freight Systems · software

CHAIN VERIFIES
  1. 0001

    Engagement created · firm

    baca08…a5cf
  2. 0002

    Criteria sealed · 6 lines

    6c858e…1b9b
  3. 0003

    Sent to client

    7a8f7b…e765
  4. 0004

    Client access issued · client

    4d7afd…a7f6
  5. 0005

    Client accepted the terms

    6a1ffc…7640
  6. 0006

    $9,500 funded · release on human approval

    c16682…6463
  7. 0007

    Capture window set for the demo

    5ecebb…a784
  8. 0008

    Capture · sprint2-demo.mp4

    bff5ce…d296
  9. 0009

    Capture · payments-api-test-run.log

    db080b…f2e5
  10. 0010

    Verdict · met · vision-referee · 6 frames cited

    Frames 2 and 5 show the 201 response with `idempotency_key` echoed; the request body at frame 1 carries the same key.

    d1d62c…f0a3
  11. 0011

    Verdict · met · document-referee

    Log lines 412–419: second POST with key `idk_7f3a…` returns the original payment id `pay_01J…` with status 200 and no new charge row.

    789976…7297
  12. 0012

    Refused · modality-cannot-establish

    A demo recording cannot establish a p95 latency figure over ten minutes at 200 rps.

    8f96a1…e884
  13. 0013

    Capture · k6-load-report.html

    516168…187c
  14. 0014

    Verdict · met · document-referee

    Report summary table: 200 rps sustained 10m00s, p95 = 212 ms, p99 = 288 ms. Threshold in the criterion is 300 ms.

    6b1d77…3d54
  15. 0015

    Verdict · met · document-referee

    Log lines 588–591: refund of 12,000 against a 9,500 payment returns 422 with `error.code = refund_exceeds_original`.

    c41e6b…4741
  16. 0016

    Verdict · met · document-referee

    Log lines 640–702: three delivery attempts at 2 s, 4 s, 8 s; each carries an `X-Signature` header; the tenant secret id matches the config dump at line 88.

    0cacbd…8c0a
  17. 0017

    Verdict · met · vision-referee · 3 frames cited

    Frames 9–11 show the audit table with one row per transition (created → authorized → captured), each with actor and ISO timestamp.

    9e3d22…1a74
  18. 0018

    Client approved

    001d39…1337
  19. 0019

    Released · $9,500 · chain recomputed first

    fe6ffe…1ca5
  20. 0020

    Client review · 5/5 · payor credential

    Fact panel computed from the chain and sealed with the review

    b0e2a1…c6c8
  21. 0021

    Talent credential published · countersigned

    53518f…6c5d

HEAD · SEQ 21

53518f1db8…6c5d

RECEIPT · CHAIN-HEAD

northn/chain-head@1

97e07ff0-38ea-4dd3-abcb-a49a180afb9d

anchored after release at seq 19 · Jun 19, 2026

  • Fields hash to the root · 5 salted leaves
  • Ed25519 signature verifies · northn-dd7f74bee6566680
  • Head matches the chain · seq 19

MERKLE ROOT

179025047cc32692f225fa91e74bbedba34fdeb11ad49002a56a7e30a5bbfd9c

PUBLIC LEDGER

illustrative coordinates
entry
#2731
anchored
2026-06-19 18:05:18 UTC
status
confirmed
WHAT IS ON THE LEDGER▾
{"id":"97e07ff0-38ea-4dd3-abcb-a49a180afb9d","kid":"northn-dd7f74bee6566680","root":"179025047cc32692f225fa91e74bbedba34fdeb11ad49002a56a7e30a5bbfd9c","sig":"V+z999HoSMV4a2xmw6lFKKkvUtiVYnwR5nGGyRbPuGno5xcFcdElqaemcygzR629mbIvosDRoDZ4kh7f5UPBBw==","t":"chain-head","v":1}

Root, signature, key id. No names, amounts, or content.

Verify this record →Download the JSON

THE RECORD FOLLOWS THE PERSON

The same receipts become a track record

The Sprint 2 release above is the credential on the right — issued by the firm, published with the person's consent, checkable by a hiring manager without a phone call. Firms carry the same record.

How firms and people carry the record

TALENT RECORD

Rina Okafor

Backend engineer — payments APIs, integrations, reliability

5 OF 5 VERIFIED

3

firms

12

milestones released

55

criteria met

89%

first pass

  • Checkout SDK v2

    Northwind Labs · Jul 2026 – Aug 2026

    COUNTERSIGNED
    Milestones
    3/3 released
    Criteria
    14 met · 88% first pass
    Evidence
    52 · 49 attested

  • Sprint 3 — Reconciliation service

    Halvorsen Digital · Jun 2026 – Jul 2026

    COUNTERSIGNED
    Milestones
    2/2 released
    Criteria
    9 met · 90% first pass
    Evidence
    41 · 39 attested

  • Sprint 2 — Payments API

    Halvorsen Digital · Jun 2026

    COUNTERSIGNED
    Milestones
    1/1 released
    Criteria
    6 met · 86% first pass
    Evidence
    3 · 2 attested

5 credentials · published with the person's consent

Verify one →

THE SAME CHAIN, THREE RECORDS

A milestone, a run sheet, a certificate

Paid work releases money on the record. Record-only products stop at the seal. Same chain either way.

PAID WORK

A software milestone

  • 0001Criteria sealed — 6 lines
  • 0002Demo captured · frames cited
  • 0003Verdict replayed — hash matches
  • 0004$9,500 released on approval

For software firms →

RECORD ONLY · NORTHN BENCH

A lab run sheet

  • 0001Protocol steps sealed — 6 lines
  • 0002Run 1 start — inside its window
  • 0003Curve R² posted by the plate reader
  • 0004ALCOA+ export verifies offline

For labs and CROs →

RECORD ONLY · NORTHN STUDY

An authorship certificate

  • 0001Consent sealed — first entry
  • 0002Composition sealed as it happened
  • 0003AI assist disclosed on the ledger
  • 0004Certificate verifies in a browser

For schools and integrity offices →

STRAIGHT ANSWERS

What a skeptic asks first

Do I have to trust Northn to trust the record?

No. Recompute the chain from your receipt and check the head against the public anchor. The referee's verdicts replay the same way.

What stops criteria changing after the work?

They're sealed as the first entry. Any later edit gets a different hash and a later sequence number — the record shows it happened.

What happens when the AI isn't sure?

It refuses, with a named code. "Not assessed" is never a pass, and the milestone waits for more evidence or a person.

Does AI move the money?

No. Money moves only on a trigger both sides agreed to up front — and only if the record still verifies. Funds sit with regulated financial institutions, never Northn.

Holding a Northn receipt?
Check it. Don't ask us.

Paste the file and your browser recomputes every hash. Or look up the receipt ID and read the ledger. No account, no login.

Verify a recordRead the security review

WHAT LEAVES THE PLATFORM

  • Digests of the record, anchored publicly
  • Never content, names, amounts, or media
  • Release instructions name the milestone — no work content