Information and Records

Content. A manifest lists cargo type, quantity, source, seals, and the planned route. Each leg of travel is recorded with time, port of departure, and intended destination.
Seals. Seals are serial-coded locks or stamps that prove a container has not been opened since the last official check. Vellari water seals, Talarq safety seals, and Synthborn escrow seals are common standards.
Checks. Inspectors review manifests at every port. They confirm cargo matches the description, seals are intact, and route legs are consistent with declared paths.
Penalties. Missing entries or broken seals lead to fines, impound of goods, or holds placed on the ship registry. In rim ports, fines may be replaced with confiscation or forced contract labor.
Forgery and Fraud. Syndicates run black-market manifest presses. Falsified manifests can pass in rim zones but collapse under core scrutiny. Crews caught with false papers may be banned from insured lanes.

Central Authority IDs. Issued to individuals with full citizen status on core-aligned worlds. Contain biometric markers and work history logs. Required for high-security ports, major contracts, and licensed bank accounts.
Planetary Records. Each world tracks its own citizens. These records can conflict with Central Authority databases. A crew member may be “licensed” on one world and “unlicensed” on another.
Data Guild Profiles. Profiles aggregate activity across worlds: past contracts, debts, disputes, and escrow holdings. A Guild endorsement is often needed to prove reliability in contested ports.
Crew Logs. Many ships maintain crew rosters stamped by port registries. A missing crew log entry raises suspicion of desertion, trafficking, or fraud.
Loss of Status. Failure to pay debts, refusal to serve contracts, or criminal charges can lead to suspension or revocation of ID status. Reinstatement requires payment, political favor, or Data Guild intervention.

Data Guild Role. Guild Archivists control what remains in the permanent record. They can bury an incident, redact a name, or highlight a commendation. Prices are high and vary by region.
Synthborn Archives. Synthborn assemblies often keep backup proofs of erased records. They value accuracy and run redundant copies across multiple nodes. These backups can restore “lost” names or expose corruption.
Bribes. Officials and guild clerks accept bribes to bury minor violations or delay notice of a blacklisting. The risk is that another clerk may still file a copy elsewhere.
Deeds and Service. Completing public works, escorting critical shipments, or serving under a licensed authority can earn reinstatement of erased records. Some Faith Networks broker these opportunities.
Permanent Blacklists. Certain offenses—such as high-level seal fraud, mass meter tampering, or mutiny against registered authority—are tagged “permanent.” These names cannot be erased without direct Central Authority council approval.
Grey Records. On rim worlds, records may exist in fragmented, contradictory form. Two ports might each claim different facts about the same person. Crews can exploit these gaps but risk collapse if proofs are compared side by side.

Always carry at least two layers of identity proof: Central ID if available, plus local or guild credentials.
Keep manifests consistent, even when smuggling. Contradictory logs draw more suspicion than missing entries.
If hiring new crew in the rim, check for grey records. A recruit erased from one port may still be wanted in another.
When buying erasure, confirm whether the Data Guild or a local clerk is performing it. Only Guild-level erasures are respected galaxy-wide.
Proof can be as simple as a seal tag, a signed ledger entry, or a Synthborn escrow record. Keep duplicates.