Verifying an audit log involves three distinct checks that are often conflated

Checking an audit log can mean three separate things: whether an application accepts a signed bundle, whether its entries form a consistent chain, and whether an independent verifier can confirm the publisher's signature. A QA test of a gateway showed an earlier 12-entry signed copy was accepted, while a tampered two-entry copy was rejected at the first entry. An independent analysis confirmed the hash chain and digest were internally consistent, but could not verify the signature because the exact signing message format was not available. The author also notes that a later export returned an unvalidated tiny response, so the older file should not be called the final ledger. The piece recommends labeling each verification claim by what it does and does not establish, and publishing a versioned specification for serialization, signing, and export completeness.