Stage377: Production Dual-Timestamp Finalization and Superseding Final Acceptance Gate

Stage377 extends Stage376 by connecting two independently verified production timestamp receipts to a new effective final-acceptance decision.

Stage377 does not rewrite the Stage372 or Stage376 historical records. It preserves both records and creates a new Stage377 result only after the required external evidence has been evaluated.

Purpose

Stage376 established the fail-closed acceptance model for external timestamps.

Stage377 adds the operational finalization layer:

1. Produce and verify an RFC3161 timestamp receipt.
2. Produce and verify an OpenTimestamps receipt.
3. Confirm that both proofs refer to the same established Stage360 target.
4. Bind the new decision to the established Stage376 result hash.
5. Issue a new effective final acceptance only when both independent proofs verify.
6. Preserve the Stage372 and Stage376 historical records without modification.

Established Bindings

Stage376 result SHA256:

32ff58a1f4d5837518226eee70b32833a8147617df3142ff2f641eca3f116138

Canonical Stage360 timestamp target SHA256:

052c8f0283110e405443d56f2396c52a8486e7a70a489f831af107dad73ab1b5

Historic Stage372 result SHA256:

ef1847f09c7862d271d71e548f403f75c91b93b2ffc21dec6016f53e0db7c3aa

Initial State

Before both production timestamp receipts are verified:

• decision: timestamp_finalization_pending
• rfc3161_verified: false
• opentimestamps_verified: false
• effective_final_acceptance: false
• maximum_timestamp_assurance: false

This is the expected fail-closed state.

An unexecuted or unconfirmed timestamp system must not be treated as verified.

Successful State

Final acceptance is issued only when both independent timestamp rails verify:

• decision: dual_timestamp_final_acceptance_verified
• rfc3161_verified: true
• opentimestamps_verified: true
• verified_proof_count: 2
• timestamp_verified: true
• effective_final_acceptance: true
• maximum_timestamp_assurance: true

Decision Model

Stage377 can return the following decisions:

timestamp_finalization_pending

Neither timestamp system has completed a verified production result.

rfc3161_verified_opentimestamps_pending

The RFC3161 receipt is verified, but the OpenTimestamps proof is still unconfirmed or unverified.

opentimestamps_verified_rfc3161_pending

The OpenTimestamps receipt is verified, but the RFC3161 receipt is still unverified.

dual_timestamp_final_acceptance_verified

Both independent timestamp systems verified the same Stage360 target and all final-acceptance conditions passed.

block

A required binding, receipt, hash, verification result, or publication-boundary condition failed.

RFC3161 Verification Rail

The RFC3161 workflow:

• verifies the exact Stage360 target SHA256 before execution
• generates an RFC3161 request using SHA256
• sends the request to the configured timestamp authority
• receives a timestamp response
• extracts the signed timestamp token
• verifies the target message imprint
• verifies the timestamp authority signature
• verifies the certificate chain using OpenSSL
• generates a metadata-only public receipt
• deletes raw RFC3161 material from the GitHub-hosted runner

The public repository does not require publication of the raw timestamp request, raw timestamp response, timestamp token, or certificate bundle.

OpenTimestamps Verification Rail

The OpenTimestamps workflow:

• verifies the exact Stage360 target SHA256 before execution
• copies the target into a private runner directory
• creates an OpenTimestamps proof
• runs OpenTimestamps verification
• records whether a confirmed public blockchain anchor exists
• records pending_confirmation when confirmation is not yet available
• claims verified only when the public anchor and verified time are confirmed
• generates a metadata-only public receipt
• deletes the raw .ots proof from the GitHub-hosted runner

A newly created OpenTimestamps proof commonly requires time before reaching a confirmed public blockchain anchor.

Stage377 does not treat an unconfirmed proof as final verification.

GitHub Actions Workflows

Stage377 adds:

• .github/workflows/stage377-production-rfc3161.yml
• .github/workflows/stage377-production-opentimestamps.yml
• .github/workflows/stage377-dual-final-acceptance.yml

RFC3161 Workflow

Produces the artifact:

stage377-rfc3161-metadata-receipt

OpenTimestamps Workflow

Produces the artifact:

stage377-opentimestamps-metadata-receipt

Dual Final-Acceptance Workflow

Accepts:

• RFC3161 GitHub Actions run ID
• OpenTimestamps GitHub Actions run ID

It downloads the two metadata receipts, imports them into the checked-out repository, runs the Stage377 finalization engine, and generates a metadata-only finalization package.

The finalization workflow does not automatically commit or push files to the repository.

Stage377 Engine

The Stage377 finalization engine is:

scripts/stage377_dual_timestamp_finalization.py

It validates:

• Stage376 result integrity
• Stage372 result integrity
• Stage360 target hash binding
• RFC3161 receipt structure
• RFC3161 verification status
• OpenTimestamps receipt structure
• OpenTimestamps verification status
• common target binding
• required proof count
• metadata-only publication boundary
• absence of forbidden timestamp binaries under docs/
• absence of private key material under docs/

Public Evidence

Stage377 publishes the following metadata and decision files:

• docs/timestamp-policy/stage377_dual_timestamp_finalization_policy.json
• docs/timestamp-evidence/stage377_rfc3161_verification_receipt.json
• docs/timestamp-evidence/stage377_opentimestamps_verification_receipt.json
• docs/timestamp-finalization/stage377_dual_timestamp_finalization_result.json
• docs/timestamp-finalization/stage377_superseding_final_acceptance_manifest.json
• docs/timestamp-finalization/stage377_dual_timestamp_finalization_summary.txt

Private and Excluded Material

Stage377 does not publish:

• private keys
• secret seeds
• OIDC tokens
• GitHub tokens
• raw QKD key material
• RFC3161 .tsq files
• RFC3161 .tsr files
• RFC3161 timestamp tokens
• RFC3161 certificate bundles
• raw OpenTimestamps .ots proof files
• free-form externally supplied shell commands

Raw timestamp material is handled under Git-ignored private directories.

Historical Preservation

Stage377 does not change the historic Stage372 or Stage376 result files.

The Stage377 result records their established hashes and creates a new result representing a later verification state.

Superseding does not mean deleting or rewriting previous history.

It means that a newer, independently verified record establishes the latest effective final-acceptance state.

Fail-Closed Principle

Stage377 does not grant final acceptance merely because:

• one timestamp rail succeeded
• a proof file exists
• a workflow completed without a validated receipt
• an OpenTimestamps proof was created but not confirmed
• a timestamp response was received but not cryptographically verified
• two receipts refer to different target hashes
• a required historical hash does not match
• raw timestamp material entered the public directory

Any such state remains pending or becomes blocked.

Local Verification

Run:

python3 -m py_compile \
  scripts/stage377_dual_timestamp_finalization.py

python3 \
  scripts/stage377_dual_timestamp_finalization.py

cat \
  docs/timestamp-finalization/stage377_dual_timestamp_finalization_summary.txt

Before production timestamp receipts exist, the expected output includes:

Decision: timestamp_finalization_pending
RFC3161 Verified: False
OpenTimestamps Verified: False
Effective Final Acceptance: False
Maximum Timestamp Assurance: False
GitHub Pages

Stage377 preserves the existing GitHub Pages structure under:

docs/

Public page:

https://mokkunsuzuki-code.github.io/stage377/

Safety Statement

Stage377 is a verification and audit-evidence system.

It does not include:

malware
exploit automation
attack payloads
credential theft
private-key publication
raw QKD key publication
License

MIT License.