Guides

Define the category

Comparison guides for buyers evaluating action authority, pre-execution control, and replayable evidence against familiar incumbents.

IAM vs action authority

Access is not authorization.

IAM tells you who can reach a system. Action authority tells you whether this exact high-risk action should execute right now — refunds, dispatches, delegations, and credential changes.

API keys vs per-action authorization

Standing credentials vs single-use authority.

Bearer tokens and API keys grant standing access. Per-action authorization evaluates each high-risk mutation before execution — with evidence for every outcome.

OPA vs authority layer

Policy engine vs full authority loop.

Open Policy Agent evaluates policy decisions. An authority layer adds identity continuity, risk advisory, human approval routing, and replayable evidence around policy.

Logs vs evidence bundles

Archaeology vs replay.

Audit logs record events. Evidence bundles bind action, policy, identity, risk, and approval into a replayable authority decision auditors can trust.

Shadow mode authorization

Observe before you enforce.

Shadow mode records ALLOW, DENY, and APPROVAL_REQUIRED decisions without blocking execution — until operators promote gating per workflow.