An evidence bundle that proves internal consistency proves exactly that: the records agree with each other. It does not prove the records existed when claimed — a pack reconstructed after the fact satisfies every integrity rule while being temporally false.
The deployed close for this gap: a hash-chained lifecycle ledger across the transaction's states, with the chain tip committed periodically to an external append-only store that neither party controls. The dispute-time pack then carries only the anchor reference; the adjudicator recomputes the chain and checks the head digest existed at the claimed time against the independent store.
Sequence fields and terminal markers prove completeness within a boundary. External anchoring proves the boundary itself wasn't rebuilt. Neither covers the other — an evidence spec that wants both properties has to name both requirements.
Related public threads: AP2 #290 on completeness proofs, #338 on dispute-time evidence packs.
Series rubric: APAF-1 — Agent Payment Assurance Framework. ← All research