Definition

Data Provenance (Security Context)

The verified, cryptographically attested record of where data came from - which device produced it, which identity authorized it, through which workflow it passed - as a security property rather than just a metadata label. In the AI era, data provenance is the architecturally correct answer to synthetic media and deepfakes: instead of trying to detect whether content was AI-generated (an arms race that detectors will lose), you attest the chain of custody from origin to recipient. Jasson Casey's prediction: device-bound credentials will extend beyond authenticating humans to attesting the provenance of data produced by cameras, microphones, sensors, and implants. The camera on a phone will have a passkey; the microphone will have a passkey. Anything that generates consequential data will eventually need a way to attest its origin - not because the content cannot be faked, but because provenance establishes authorization.