EVIDENCE DISCIPLINE
A claim must remain inside the evidence.
ODA3 separates the source record, the claim it makes about itself, checks against defined criteria, the finding reached and the conclusion that finding can support.
CLAIM ≤ EVIDENCE
No stronger conclusion than the examined record.
RECORD PROPERTIES
Preserve what a reader needs to inspect.
The property set is designed to prevent a present artifact from being mistaken for sufficient assurance.
01
Source
Where the record came from and how it relates to the system or claim.
02
Basis
What the record states was observed, tested, reproduced or reviewed, and on what stated basis.
03
Verification
What was checked against defined criteria, by whom or by what process, and with what result.
04
Limits
What the record does not establish outside its scope.
05
Absence
What expected record, event or signal is missing, conflicting or unavailable.
ANALYTICAL STATES
Do not collapse fact, interpretation and conclusion.
A reported observation, reproduced behavior, corroborated source, inference and unsupported proposition need distinct treatment. Verification is a described activity, not a decorative label.
NEGATIVE EVIDENCE
What did not happen belongs in the record.
Missing logs, failed reproductions, refused access, absent controls and unresolved contradictions are relevant to the question. Their significance is established within scope; absence is never silently converted into proof.
CONCLUSION BOUNDARY
Scope travels with the finding.
System version, operating period, environment, criteria, exclusions and limitations constrain the conclusion. Reuse in a new setting requires a renewed basis.