AFLE
Cross-ECO Assurance and Federated Lineage Exchange
Federated Provenance, Supply-Chain Transparency, and Carbon Passport Interoperability
1. Purpose
The Cross-ECO Assurance Framework enables secure, standardized, and verifiable exchange of lineage metadata between independent ZAYAZ tenants, suppliers, auditors, buyers, regulators, and assurance providers.
It extends the ZAYAZ provenance architecture beyond organizational boundaries by federating:
- USO runtime lineage
- SSSR semantic definitions
- ZAR artifact references
- ZSSR routing attestations
- TrustGate trust evaluations
- DAL assurance events
into a shared trust ecosystem.
The framework enables:
- Supply-chain transparency
- Scope 3 verification
- Carbon passport interoperability
- Cross-organizational assurance
- Federated trust propagation
- Digital product passport integration
while preserving data sovereignty and commercial confidentiality.
Rather than exchanging raw data, organizations exchange E-C-O™ Numbers and the associated cryptographically verifiable proofs, trust attestations, carbon passports, lineage references, and assurance evidence linked to those identifiers.
This federation model underpins the ECO Number Network, linking entities via verifiable digital identifiers and cryptographically signed data attestations.
This enables organizations to collaborate on sustainability reporting and assurance without exposing sensitive business information.
2. Strategic Objectives
The framework is designed to:
| Objective | Description |
|---|---|
| Data Sovereignty | Organizations retain ownership of source data |
| Cross-ECO Assurance | Enable assurance across organizational boundaries |
| Supply Chain Transparency | Improve visibility into upstream and downstream emissions |
| Carbon Passport Exchange | Enable interoperable product-level assurance |
| Regulatory Readiness | Support CSRD, DPP, ISO 14083 and PAS 2080 |
| Trust Federation | Propagate trust across interconnected organizations |
| Auditability | Allow independent verification of shared proofs |
3. Federated Architecture
┌──────────────────────────┐
│ Supplier A │
│ ECO-196-123-654-444 │
└──────┬───────────────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────┐
│ Federation Gateway │
│ (ZSSR Federated Router) │
└─────────┬───────────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────┐
│ Federated Assurance │
│ Ledger (FAL) │
└─────────┬───────────────┘
│
▼
┌──────────────────────────┐
│ Buyer B │
│ ECO-055-321-456-777 │
└──────┬───────────────────┘
▲
│
▼
Auditor Nodes
Regulator Nodes
Assurance Providers
Each participant maintains independent local infrastructure while exchanging only verified proofs and attestations.
4. Federation Components
| Component | Purpose |
|---|---|
| USO | Local runtime lineage |
| SSSR | Semantic consistency |
| ZAR | Artifact references |
| ZSSR | Federation routing |
| TrustGate | Trust evaluation |
| DAL | Local assurance events |
| FAL | Federated proof registry |
| AIGS | AI provenance governance |
| TCMS | Historical continuity |
| ECO Number Network | Federated identity layer |
5. Core Concepts
| Concept | Description |
|---|---|
| ECO Number | Global entity identifier |
| Lineage Proof | Cryptographic summary of lineage |
| Attestation Bundle | Signed proof package |
| Carbon Passport | Product or supplier assurance package |
| Federated Assurance Ledger (FAL) | Registry of shared assurance proofs |
| Federated Replay | Cross-instance verification workflow |
| Trust Propagation | Trust inheritance across value chains |
| Assurance Level | Shared assurance classification |
6. DAL and FAL Relationship
The framework distinguishes between local assurance records and federated proof exchange.
DAL
Digital Assurance Ledger
Stores:
- approvals
- verifier decisions
- evidence acceptance
- assurance events
- trust transitions
within a single organization.
FAL
Federated Assurance Ledger
Stores:
- proof digests
- attestation references
- federation signatures
- proof anchors
across organizations.
Organization A
DAL
↓
Federated Attestation
↓
FAL
↓
Organization B
DAL
DAL governs local assurance.
FAL governs federated proof verification.
7. Data Exchange Philosophy
The framework follows three principles.
Data Sovereignty
Raw operational data remains local.
Cryptographic Trust
All attestations are digitally signed.
Interoperability
Proofs conform to open standards and interoperable schemas.
8. Attestation Bundle Structure
Each shared proof follows the ZAYAZ Federated Lineage Attestation Schema.
{
"@context": ["https://schema.zayaz.io/lineage/v1"],
"id": "urn:uso:01JBF0W8S9Q0R1S2T3U4V5W6X",
"issuer": "ECO-196-123-654-444",
"issued_at": "2026-10-25T09:40:00Z",
"assurance_level": "A4",
"assurance": {
"dal_event_id": "DAL-2026-00321"
},
"signal": {
"csi": "MICE.InvoiceEmissions.OUTPUT.CO2E.1_0",
"trust_score": 0.93,
"quantity": {"value": 56.2, "unit": "kgCO2e"},
"period": {"from": "2025-09-01", "to": "2025-09-30"}
},
"lineage": {
"origin_chain_codes": ["DSA9Q","NML4C","MIE12","TG3K7"],
"hash_chain_root": "d05f…9a1e"
},
"proof": {
"type": "Ed25519Signature2020",
"created": "2025-10-25T09:41:00Z",
"proofPurpose": "assertionMethod",
"verificationMethod": "did:ZAYAZ:ECO-A123#trustgate-key",
"jws": "eyJhbGciOiJFZERTQSJ9..Hk3JfK..."
}
}
No confidential transactional data is exchanged.
Only verifiable metadata, proofs, and assurance references are shared.
9. AI Provenance Attestations
Federated proofs may include AI-origin metadata.
Example:
{
"ai_contributions": [
{
"agent": "MaterialityMentor",
"model_version": "gpt-5.5",
"confidence_score": 0.92
}
]
}
AI provenance remains governed through AIGS.
10. Exchange Workflow
| Step | Actor | Action | Output |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Supplier | Generate attestation | Attestation Bundle |
| 2 | Federation Gateway | Validate signature | Proof registered |
| 3 | FAL | Record digest | Proof anchor |
| 4 | Buyer | Retrieve attestation | Trust update |
| 5 | TrustGate | Recompute trust | Updated trust profile |
| 6 | Auditor | Verify proof chain | Assurance evidence |
11. Federation Routing
All federation traffic is governed by ZSSR.
Routing decisions may consider:
- jurisdiction
- trust requirements
- assurance levels
- organization type
- regulatory requirements
Federation Request
↓
ZSSR Federation Router
↓
Federation Gateway
↓
Remote ECO
12. Federation Gateway API
| Endpoint | Method | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
/federation/attestations | POST | Register attestation |
/federation/attestations/{uso_id} | GET | Retrieve proof |
/federation/eco/{eco_number}/trust | GET | Trust profile |
/federation/replay/{attestation_id} | POST | Federated replay |
/federation/ledger/verify/{hash} | GET | Verify proof anchor |
All communication uses:
- Mutual TLS
- OAuth2
- JSON-LD signatures
- Ed25519 or ECDSA signatures
13. Carbon Passport Assembly
A Carbon Passport represents a verified footprint package for a product, project, facility, or supplier.
Structure
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| passport_id | Unique identifier |
| passport_version | Passport version |
| methodology_version | Applied methodology |
| eco_number | Entity identifier |
| attestation_refs | Source attestations |
| assurance_level | Assurance classification |
| verification_status | Verification outcome |
Example
{
"passport_id": "CP-2025-091",
"passport_version": "1.2",
"methodology_version": "ESRS-E1-2026",
"assurance_level": "A4",
"eco_number": "ECO-196-123-654-444",
"period": {"from": "2025-01-01", "to": "2025-12-31"},
"attestation_refs": [
"urn:uso:01JBF0W8S9Q0R1S2T3U4V5W6X",
"urn:uso:01JBF1XYZ..."
],
"aggregate_metrics": {
"co2e": {"value": 12450, "unit": "kgCO2e", "uncertainty": 0.03}
},
"verification_status": "verified",
"signature": "eyJhbGciOiJFZERTQSJ9..."
}
14. Trust Propagation
Trust can propagate through value chains.
Supplier Trust
↓
Passport Trust
↓
Buyer Trust
↓
Portfolio Trust
TrustGate evaluates:
- trust inheritance
- confidence degradation
- proof quality
- attestation coverage
before propagating trust.
15. Federated Replay
Federated Replay extends Operational Assurance across organizational boundaries.
Supplier Proof
↓
Buyer Replay Request
↓
Federated Verification
↓
Assurance Result
This enables:
- Scope 3 verification
- supplier audits
- carbon passport validation
- regulator review
without exposing source data.
16. Trust Aggregation
The platform computes:
| Metric | Description | | | Verified Trust Index (VTI) | Weighted trust average | | Attestation Coverage | Verified proof coverage | | Integrity Confidence | Cryptographic verification quality | | Assurance Coverage | Percentage of A3-A5 attestations | | Replay Success Rate | Federated replay success |
These metrics continuously update TrustGate profiles.
17. Governance and Security
Controls include:
- Digital signatures
- Mutual TLS
- OAuth2 authorization
- Ledger anchoring
- Revocation services
- Signature verification
- TrustGate key management
- Federated audit logging
All federation activity is logged and traceable.
Example Verification Query (Cross-ECO)
Buyer verifying a supplier’s attestation:
curl https://hub.zayaz.io/federation/attestations/01JBF0W8S9Q0R1S2T3U4V5W6X \
-H "Authorization: Bearer <token>" \
| jq '.proof.verificationMethod, .signal.trust_score’
↓
{
"proof.verificationMethod": "did:ZAYAZ:ECO-A123#trustgate-key",
"signal.trust_score": "0.93"
}
↓
Result:
"did:ZAYAZ:ECO-A123#trustgate-key"
0.93
This confirms that the attestation originated from supplier ECO-A123 and maintains a verified trust score of 0.93.
18. Regulatory Alignment
| Standard | Requirement | ZAYAZ Mechanism |
|---|---|---|
| CSRD Art. 26 | Cross-company traceability | Federated lineage proofs |
| ESRS E1/E5 | Supplier data provenance | Carbon Passports |
| ISO 14083 | Value-chain exchange | Federated Attestations |
| PAS 2080 | Supply-chain collaboration | ECO Network |
| EU DPP | Product traceability | Carbon Passport linkage |
| EU AI Act | AI transparency | AIGS provenance |
Example End-to-End Cross-ECO Chain
| Stage | Entity | Artifact | Trust Level | Assurance Level | DAL Ref | FAL Ref | Exchange Artifact |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Supplier | ECO-A123 | MIE12 | 0.93 | A3 | DAL-2026-00121 | FAL-2026-10111 | Attestation Bundle |
| Buyer | ECO-B456 | TG3K7 | 0.91 | A3 | DAL-2026-00457 | FAL-2026-10111 | Trust Update |
| Auditor | ECO-AUD01 | VRE77 | — | A4 | DAL-2026-00883 | FAL-2026-10111 | Assurance Report |
| Regulator | EU-CSRD | Regulatory Validation Record | — | A5 | DAL-2026-01002 | FAL-2026-10111 | Ledger Verification Proof |
Note:
- DAL = Local assurance memory
- FAL = Federated assurance memory
19. Federation Governance
The framework is designed for future alignment with:
- EGFS
- FITI
- EAC
- ECO Number Governance
- Digital Product Passport ecosystems
These governance models provide interoperability between independent assurance networks.
20. Future Enhancements
| Initiative | Description |
|---|---|
| Zero-Knowledge Lineage Proofs | Privacy-preserving verification |
| ECO DID Registry | W3C DID integration |
| EU DPP Integration | Product passport interoperability |
| Real-Time Trust Feeds | Continuous trust exchange |
| Federated Assurance Marketplace | Third-party verification services |
| Autonomous Federation Agents | AI-assisted federation workflows |
21. Summary
The Cross-ECO Assurance Framework extends ZAYAZ from a platform of traceability into a network of trust.
Organizations exchange:
- lineage proofs
- trust attestations
- assurance evidence
- carbon passports
rather than raw operational data.
By combining:
- USO
- SSSR
- ZAR
- ZSSR
- TrustGate
- DAL
- FAL
- AIGS
the framework creates a federated assurance ecosystem capable of supporting global supply-chain transparency, carbon passport interoperability, and machine-verifiable sustainability assurance across organizational boundaries.