# IAM-04 Action attribution in logs

Domain: IAM Identity, Access & Authorization · HI-AAF v1.3 · Public review · https://humanintel.net/standard/iam/iam-04

Audit logs clearly distinguish actions taken by an agent from actions taken by a human user, with attribution to both the agent identity and, where applicable, the user on whose behalf it acted.

Downstream systems' audit logs are sufficient to answer 'which agent performed this action' for every agent action, and where the agent acts on behalf of a user, 'on whose behalf.' The attribution survives token rotation, intermediate proxies, and cross-system handoffs. Without clean attribution, incident investigation and access-control auditing are impossible.

## Maturity

- L1 Ad hoc: Controls exist informally; documentation is incomplete; no consistent review.
- L2 Documented: Controls are written down; ownership is assigned; review cadence is defined.
- L3 Operated: Controls are followed in practice; evidence is collected; deviations are tracked. Published criterion for IAM-04: Audit logs for all systems the agent interacts with attribute actions to the agent identity; sampling-based verification confirms attribution survives cross-system handoffs; attribution is tested after credential rotation events.
- L4 Measured: Control effectiveness is measured against documented thresholds; trends are reported.
- L5 Continuously Improved: Controls evolve based on incident learning; maturity gains are evidenced over time.

## Evidence an assessor asks for

- Audit logs for all systems the agent interacts with attribute actions to the agent identity.
- Sampling-based verification confirms attribution survives cross-system handoffs.
- Attribution is tested after credential rotation events.

## Framework mappings

- ISO/IEC 42001: A.7.4
- SOC 2 (TSC): CC6.1, CC7.2
- EU AI Act: Art. 15(2)
- Singapore: AI Verify Security

Mappings are directional: meeting this control evidences but does not by itself satisfy the external requirement.

## Related

- Cited by DAT-12 Embedding and vector store integrity: https://humanintel.net/standard/dat/dat-12

## Cite this control

Human Intelligence. HI-AAF v1.3, IAM-04 Action attribution in logs. Public review edition, July 2026. https://humanintel.net/standard/iam/iam-04