Privacy & Consent Policy

1. Default Privacy Posture (Default A)

All proofs, proof trails, vault contents, and node activity are non-public unless explicitly enabled by the user.

No proof content is publicly visible without affirmative, intentional opt-in by the Node.

Privacy is the baseline state. Visibility is an exception.

This policy governs all constructs described elsewhere in the system.

2. Proof Visibility

2.1 Private by Default

• Proof content is visible only to the Node who created it
• Proof titles, metadata, or existence markers are not discoverable by other users or the public by default
• Proofs are not indexed by search engines, crawlers, or third-party AI systems

2.2 User-Controlled Disclosure

A Node may choose to:

• Share a specific proof
• Share a subset of proofs (by category or marker)
• Share an entire proof trail

All sharing actions must be:

• Explicit
• Reversible
• Scoped (what is shared, with whom, and for how long)

No proof becomes visible by implication or default behavior.

3. Discovery & "Public" Constructs

Any construct described in the system as "public," "explorer," "registry," "profile," "dashboard," or similar is governed by this rule:

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• Node Registry
• Signal Explorer
• Proof Passport
• Public Signal Claim Statements
• Signal Score or dashboards

If a Node does not opt in, these constructs either:

• Do not appear at all, or
• Appear only in a redacted, non-identifying, metadata-only form, if required for network integrity

4. Search Engines, Crawlers, and External AI

• All Signal-hosted sites are non-indexable by default
• Robots.txt, noindex headers, and equivalent controls are enforced at the infrastructure level
• No proof content is exposed to search engines, web crawlers, or external AI training pipelines
• Opt-in visibility does not imply search indexing unless explicitly enabled as a separate action

5. Network Metadata & Cryptographic Records

5.1 What the Network Stores

The Signal Network may store:

• Cryptographic hashes or attestations that a proof exists
• Timestamps
• Non-readable identifiers
• Fragmented metadata required for trust, thresholding, and integrity

5.2 What the Network Does Not Store

The Signal Network does not centrally store:

• Full proof content
• Human-readable proof bodies
• Private vault contents

Central records are proof-of-existence, not proof content.

6. Fragmentation & Breach Resistance

• Network-level records are cryptographically fragmented
• No single system breach reveals readable proof trails or complete user histories
• Fragments are non-reconstructable without proper authorization and context
• This design intentionally limits the value of exfiltrated data

7. Consent, Revocation, and Control

• Consent is granular, explicit, and revocable
• A Node may withdraw consent at any time
• Revocation removes visibility going forward; historical cryptographic attestations may remain for integrity but are non-readable
• No consent is permanent unless explicitly locked by the Node

8. Internal Access & Trust Operations

Signal Network operators may access metadata only for:

• Trust thresholds
• Abuse prevention
• Network integrity

Content access requires:

• User authorization, or
• A formally governed process defined elsewhere (e.g., lawful process handling)

Operational access does not equal publication.

9. Policy Supremacy

This policy supersedes:

• UI labels
• Marketing language
• Feature names
• Informal interpretations of "public"

If a conflict exists, this policy controls behavior.

10. Policy Evolution

• This policy may be versioned
• Changes must preserve Default A unless explicitly overridden through governance
• No retroactive expansion of visibility is permitted without renewed user consent