Cyber Security & Digital Integrity Policy

🔐 Data Security & Infrastructure

Aevum News employs a defense-in-depth strategy across all digital assets. Our infrastructure is engineered to resist unauthorized access, data exfiltration, and service disruption.

Core Architectural Principles

• Zero-trust network architecture with mandatory micro-segmentation
• AES-256 encryption at rest and TLS 1.3 in transit for all data pipelines
• Multi-factor authentication (MFA) enforced across all editorial and administrative systems
• Automated, immutable backups stored across geographically dispersed, air-gapped servers

🤖 AI & Deepfake Standards

As generative AI proliferates, Aevum News maintains strict boundaries between human journalism and algorithmic processing to preserve editorial authenticity.

Non-Negotiable Directives

• No AI-generated articles, headlines, or op-eds. All narrative content is written by verified journalists.
• AI tools are permitted only for data aggregation, translation verification, and audio transcription, with human editorial oversight.
• Mandatory deepfake detection scans on all submitted multimedia before publication.
• Transparent disclosure labels on any content that utilizes AI-assisted analysis or visualization.

🛡️ Secure Sourcing & Whistleblower Protection

Protecting sources is foundational to investigative journalism. Our digital safeguards ensure confidential informants can communicate safely without exposure to surveillance or retaliation.

SecureDrop Implementation

We operate a hardened SecureDrop instance running on Tails OS, accessible via Tor. All submissions are encrypted end-to-end, and journalist access is restricted to senior editors with isolated workstations.

• PGP-encrypted email channels for ongoing source relationships
• Metadata stripping on all received documents and images
• Legal firewall separating editorial teams from IT administration
• Regular third-party penetration testing of submission pipelines

👁️ Reader Privacy & Data Minimization

We reject surveillance capitalism. Aevum News does not track, sell, or monetize reader behavioral data. Our business model relies on direct subscriptions and institutional partnerships, not ad-tech telemetry.

All necessary analytics are processed on-premise using privacy-preserving aggregation. IP addresses are anonymized at the edge, and account data is automatically purged after 18 months of inactivity unless legally mandated otherwise.

🚨 Incident Response Protocol

In the event of a security breach, Aevum News follows a structured, transparent response framework aligned with industry best practices.

Response Timeline

• 0-1 Hour: SOC detection, immediate containment, and internal severity assessment
• 1-4 Hours: Forensic isolation, threat actor analysis, and executive notification
• 24 Hours: Public disclosure statement if reader data or published content is compromised
• 72 Hours: Independent third-party audit initiation and remediation deployment
• 30 Days: Post-incident report publication and policy updates

✅ Compliance & Third-Party Audits

Our cybersecurity framework is continuously validated against international standards and regulatory requirements.

Annual penetration tests are conducted by independent red teams. Results are shared with our editorial board and summarized in our annual transparency report.

📬 Report a Vulnerability

Do you believe you've discovered a security weakness, unauthorized access attempt, or policy violation involving Aevum News infrastructure? We encourage responsible disclosure.

PGP Public Key Fingerprint: A7F2 9C41 B3E8 0D5F 22A1 8899 4C7E 10D2