Terms of Use — Sentinel Authority

Attestation means a formal ODDC conformance determination issued by Sentinel Authority and recorded in the public registry. The terms “attestation” and “certificate” are used interchangeably throughout the platform and these Terms.

Applicant means the legal entity submitting an autonomous system for conformance determination.

CAT-72 means the 72-hour Conformance Assurance Test administered by Sentinel Authority as part of the ODDC determination process.

Conformance Term means the period during which an Attestation remains active, subject to continuous monitoring and annual renewal.

ENVELO Interlock means the non-bypassable runtime assurance layer required for conformance determination, formerly referred to as “ENVELO Agent.”

ODDC means Operational Design Domain Conformance, the standard against which systems are assessed.

Services means the ODDC conformance determination platform, ENVELO Interlock integration, CAT-72 assessment, continuous surveillance monitoring, public verification registry, APIs, and all related attestation services provided by Sentinel Authority.

Surveillance means the automated continuous monitoring of attested systems through the ENVELO Interlock, including heartbeat monitoring, telemetry analysis, and violation-rate tracking.

02Services Description

Sentinel Authority provides ODD Conformance Determination (ODDC) services for autonomous systems:

Application review, scope assessment, and pre-review evaluation

CAT-72 conformance testing with tamper-evident audit trails

ODDC attestation issuance and public registry listing

ENVELO Interlock software for runtime boundary assurance

Continuous post-attestation surveillance monitoring

Public certificate verification services

API access for programmatic integration

03Account Registration

To access certain Services, you must create an account. By registering, you agree to:

Provide accurate and complete information during registration

Maintain the confidentiality and security of your account credentials, including any two-factor authentication mechanisms

Promptly notify Sentinel Authority of any unauthorized access to your account

Accept responsibility for all activities conducted under your account, including actions taken by authorized users within your organization

04Conformance Applications

By submitting a conformance application, you represent and warrant that:

All information provided is accurate, complete, and not misleading

The submitting party has the legal authority to act on behalf of the Applicant organization

You will cooperate fully with the assessment process, including providing access to technical documentation, system specifications, and test environments

Incomplete, inaccurate, or materially misleading information may result in denial, suspension, or revocation of conformance

Applications are reviewed in the order received. Sentinel Authority reserves the right to prioritize applications at its discretion.

05Fees and Payment

Conformance fees are specified during scope assessment. Payment terms:

Assessment fees are due in full upon application submission

Fees are non-refundable — covers application review, test administration, and certificate issuance

Re-assessment fees apply for subsequent attempts following a failed CAT-72 assessment

Annual renewal fees apply for maintenance of active attestations

API usage beyond published rate limits may be subject to additional fees

06ENVELO Interlock License

Subject to these Terms and a valid attestation, we grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to use the ENVELO Interlock software solely for:

Systems covered by your ODDC attestation

The duration of your Conformance Term

Operation within the boundaries of the attested Operational Design Domain

You may not reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, modify, create derivative works from, or distribute the ENVELO Interlock software. Any attempt to bypass, disable, or tamper with the ENVELO Interlock constitutes a material breach of these Terms and will result in immediate revocation of your attestation.

07Continuous Surveillance & Automated Enforcement

Attested systems are subject to continuous automated surveillance throughout the Conformance Term. By obtaining an attestation, you acknowledge and consent to the following monitoring and enforcement mechanisms.

7.1 — Heartbeat Monitoring

The ENVELO Interlock must maintain an active connection to the Sentinel Authority platform. Heartbeat signals are transmitted at regular intervals to confirm operational status. Failure to maintain connectivity triggers the escalation thresholds described in Section 7.3.

7.2 — Telemetry and Violation Tracking

All boundary evaluations performed by the ENVELO Interlock are recorded as telemetry. Each action is classified as PASS (within operational envelope) or BLOCK (boundary violation prevented). Violation rates are calculated and monitored continuously.

7.3 — Automated Enforcement Thresholds

The following automated enforcement actions are applied without prior notice:

Warning: ENVELO Interlock offline for more than 5 minutes triggers a warning alert

Automatic Suspension: Offline for more than 24 consecutive hours results in automatic suspension. The public registry status displays “SUSPENDED” and the attestation is not valid during suspension

Automatic Revocation: Offline for more than 72 consecutive hours results in permanent revocation. Revocation is irreversible — a new application and full CAT-72 assessment are required

Violation-Rate Suspension: Violation rate exceeding 20% (after a minimum of 100 recorded actions) results in automatic suspension

7.4 — Grace Period

A two-hour grace period applies following platform restarts to prevent false enforcement actions caused by infrastructure maintenance.

7.5 — Reinstatement

Suspended attestations may be reinstated upon restoration of ENVELO Interlock operation and satisfactory review by Sentinel Authority. Reinstatement is not guaranteed. Revoked attestations cannot be reinstated.

7.6 — Notifications

Sentinel Authority will make reasonable efforts to notify you by email of enforcement actions. However, enforcement actions take effect immediately and are not contingent upon successful delivery of notification.

08API Access

Sentinel Authority may provide programmatic access to certain Services through APIs. API access is subject to:

Authentication via API keys issued through the platform, scoped to your attestation and assigned permissions (full, read-only, or ENVELO-only)

Rate limits of 200 requests per minute per IP address, applied globally to all API endpoints

Prohibition on sharing, publishing, or transferring API keys to unauthorized parties

Immediate revocation of API keys upon withdrawal or expiration of the associated attestation

Sentinel Authority reserves the right to throttle, suspend, or revoke API access at any time for abuse, excessive usage, or violation of these Terms.

09Demo and Sandbox Environments

Sentinel Authority may provide demonstration or sandbox environments for evaluation purposes. Demo environments:

Generate simulated telemetry and do not reflect actual system performance

Do not constitute valid attestations and carry no conformance status

May be terminated at any time without notice

Are subject to all other provisions of these Terms except those specifically relating to conformance obligations

10Nature and Scope of Attestation

ODDC attestation is a determination of operational design domain conformance based on the CAT-72 assessment and continuous ENVELO Interlock monitoring. It does not constitute:

Regulatory approval by any government authority

Safety certification under any standard (including IEC 61508, ISO 26262, DO-178C, or similar)

Product certification, type approval, or homologation

A guarantee, warranty, or assurance of system performance, safety, or reliability

Insurance coverage of any kind

Operators remain solely and exclusively responsible for the behavior of their systems, compliance with all applicable laws and regulations, and all consequences arising from system operation, whether attested or not.

11Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law:

Total aggregate liability shall not exceed the fees actually paid by you for the specific attestation at issue during the twelve months preceding the claim

We are not liable for any indirect, incidental, consequential, special, exemplary, or punitive damages, including loss of profits, data, business opportunity, or goodwill

We are not liable for damages arising from the operation of any system, whether attested or not, including damages caused by system malfunction, boundary violations, or failures of the ENVELO Interlock

We are not liable for damages arising from automated enforcement actions taken in accordance with Section 7

12Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Sentinel Authority, its officers, directors, employees, and agents from any claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from:

Your use of the Services

The operation of any system for which you hold or have held an attestation

Any violation of these Terms

Any infringement or misappropriation of third-party intellectual property rights

Any claim by a third party arising from automated enforcement actions applied to your attestation

13Confidentiality

We will treat your application materials, technical documentation, and system specifications as confidential, subject to the following exceptions:

Certificate information — including certificate number, organization name, system name, system type, conformance status, and issuance and expiration dates — is publicly available through the verification registry

Aggregate, anonymized data may be used for research, reporting, or improvement of the Services

Disclosure may be required by applicable law, regulation, or valid legal process

Surveillance data, including enforcement actions and violation records, may be disclosed to regulatory authorities upon lawful request

14Non-Conformance and Revocation

In addition to the automated enforcement actions described in Section 7, Sentinel Authority may determine non-conformance, suspend, or revoke an attestation for any of the following grounds:

Information provided in the application or during assessment was materially false, misleading, or incomplete

System modifications made after attestation materially alter conformance characteristics without prior notification

The ENVELO Interlock is disabled, bypassed, tampered with, or modified in any unauthorized manner

Payment obligations under these Terms are not met

Any other material violation of these Terms or the Conformance Agreement

Non-conformance determinations are further governed by the Conformance Agreement executed between the Applicant and Sentinel Authority at the time of application.

15Certificate Expiry and Renewal

Attestations are issued for a Conformance Term of one year from the date of issuance. Expiry procedures:

Sentinel Authority will send expiry warnings at 30 days and 7 days prior to the expiration date

Expired attestations are automatically marked as “EXPIRED” in the public registry

Renewal requires contact with Sentinel Authority to schedule a new CAT-72 assessment

There is no automatic renewal of attestations

16Termination

Sentinel Authority may suspend or terminate your access to the Services, in whole or in part, for violation of these Terms, non-payment of fees, or any conduct that Sentinel Authority reasonably determines to be harmful to the integrity of the Services or other users.

You may close your account at any time by contacting Sentinel Authority. Closure of your account does not affect any obligations, liabilities, or attestation enforcement actions incurred prior to termination.

17Modifications

Sentinel Authority may amend these Terms upon thirty (30) days’ prior written notice to the email address associated with your account. Amendments apply prospectively as of the stated effective date. Continued use of the Services following the notice period constitutes acceptance of the amended Terms. If you do not agree with the amendments, you must discontinue use of the Services prior to the effective date.

18Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Province of Ontario, Canada, without regard to conflict-of-law principles. Any dispute arising out of or in connection with these Terms shall be submitted to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Ontario, Canada.

If any provision of these Terms is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

19Warranty Disclaimer

The Services are provided “as is” and “as available” without warranty of any kind, whether express, implied, or statutory, including but not limited to warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, and non-infringement. Sentinel Authority does not warrant that the Services will be uninterrupted, error-free, or secure, or that any defects will be corrected.

20General Provisions

20.1 — Survival

Sections addressing Definitions, Limitation of Liability, Indemnification, Confidentiality, Governing Law, Warranty Disclaimer, and General Provisions survive termination or expiration of these Terms.

20.2 — Force Majeure

Neither party shall be liable for delays or failures in performance resulting from causes beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to acts of God, governmental action, natural disaster, pandemic, war, terrorism, or failure of third-party infrastructure.

20.3 — Assignment

You may not assign or transfer these Terms or any rights hereunder without the prior written consent of Sentinel Authority. Sentinel Authority may assign these Terms in connection with a merger, acquisition, or reorganization, provided the successor assumes all obligations herein.

20.4 — Export Control

You represent and warrant that your use of the Services complies with all applicable export control laws and regulations, including those of Canada, the United States, and any jurisdiction in which you operate.

20.5 — Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with the Conformance Agreement and any applicable order forms, constitute the entire agreement between you and Sentinel Authority with respect to the Services and supersede all prior or contemporaneous communications, whether oral or written.

20.6 — Waiver

The failure of Sentinel Authority to enforce any provision of these Terms shall not constitute a waiver of that provision or the right to enforce it at a later time.

Questions About These Terms

Contact our conformance team for clarification.

conformance@sentinelauthority.org →