DOSSIER | 03

Operational doctrine spanning vulnerability research, forensic reconstruction, and legal-technical harmonization.

REF: METH-03

Methodology Register

Methodological Architecture

A technical canon aligning bug bounty research, forensic reconstruction, disclosure choreography, and legal synthesis under one evidentiary rubric.

Bug Bounty & Vulnerability Research

Alpha Vector Tech conducts security research following industry best practices and responsible disclosure principles. Our methodology prioritizes:

Pre-Engagement

  • Verification of scope boundaries
  • Review of program policies
  • Baseline system state documentation

Testing Protocol

  • Non-destructive approaches
  • Minimal privilege escalation
  • Complete logging of activities

Evidence Preservation

  • SHA-256 hashing of evidence
  • Timestamped documentation
  • Secure isolating storage

Responsible Disclosure Protocol

01

Initial Report

Vulnerability details submitted through official channels within 24 hours of confirmation. Report includes technical description, reproduction steps, and impact assessment.

02

Coordination Window

Standard 90-day disclosure window following CERT guidelines. Extended timelines available for complex vulnerabilities requiring significant remediation.

03

Patch Verification

Upon patch release, independent verification that remediation effectively addresses the vulnerability without introducing new issues.

04

Public Disclosure

Post-patch disclosure coordinated with vendor. Technical details released to enable defensive measures while minimizing exploitation risk.

Forensic Reconstruction Techniques

Git Archaeology

Systematic analysis of version control history to reconstruct development decisions, identify testing gaps, and establish attribution.

  • Commit message analysis
  • Branch topology reconstruction
  • Code review trail examination
  • git bisect for bug introduction

Merkle Tree Verification

Cryptographic proof of log integrity using SHA-256 hash chains, ensuring tamper-evident audit trails.

  • Proof of inclusion verification
  • Consistency proof generation
  • Root hash comparison
  • FRE 902(14) compliance

eBPF System Telemetry

Kernel-level observability capturing system calls, file access, and network activity with sub-millisecond precision.

  • Real-time process monitoring
  • Syscall tracing
  • Network flow capture
  • Memory access patterns

Causal Inference Analysis

Mathematical frameworks establishing directed causation from system events to observed outcomes.

  • Transfer entropy calculation
  • Granger causality testing
  • Pearl's do-calculus application
  • Counterfactual analysis

Legal-Technical Synthesis

Our methodology bridges the gap between technical findings and legal requirements, ensuring research outputs are admissible and compelling in legal proceedings.

Daubert Compliance

  • Testability: Methods produce falsifiable predictions that can be independently verified
  • Peer Review: Techniques grounded in peer-reviewed computer science literature
  • Known Error Rates: Documentation of statistical confidence intervals

Evidence Standards

  • FRE 902(14) self-authentication for digital evidence
  • Chain of custody maintenance throughout analysis
  • Cryptographic integrity verification at all stages

Australian Evidentiary Context

  • Civil Admissibility: Evidence Act 1995 Cth Section 63/64 & 69 compliant.
  • Consumer Law: Structured for ACL Schedule 2 Section 18 thresholds.

Explore the primary research corpus

Detailed technical specifications for applying these methodologies in live engagements.