CFSE - Concept Flow Scenarios Explorations

Version 1.0.0 | January 2026

CFSE is a formal methodology for security epistemology: a disciplined approach to replacing intuition with structure, and claims with evidence.

CFSE is a formal methodology for security epistemology—a disciplined approach to knowing whether a system is secure, not guessing or hoping. It builds a world model of systems through concepts, interactions, and flows, expresses security properties as formal invariants with temporal logic, and validates claims through systematic exploration backed by structured evidence.

Not a scanner. Not a checklist. A formal framework for security knowledge.

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Quick Start

Goal	Resource
Start here (purpose + model)	guides/foundations/introduction.md
Understand the artifact pipeline	spec/foundations/artifact-system.md
Conformance levels	spec/foundations/conformance.md
ID syntax	spec/grammar/01-id-syntax.md
Normative spec	spec/
Architecture map	ARCHITECTURE.yml

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Directory Structure

cfse-spec/
spec/ # Normative core specification (source of truth)
foundations/ # Core concepts: artifact system, conformance, extensions
grammar/ # ID syntax, references, formal logic, field types
artifacts/ # Artifact definitions with YAML schemas
primary/ # Concept, Interaction, Flow, Scenario, Exploration, Finding
supporting/ # Predicate, Invariant, Generator, Patch
semantics/ # Invariant states, verdicts, lifecycle, traceability
extensions/ # Optional extensions (opt-in; may be empty)
guides/ # Informative background and reading guides
rfcs/ # Informative RFC/proposal process (no archive required)
ARCHITECTURE.yml # Machine-readable structure manifest

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The CFSE Pipeline

Concept -> Interaction -> Flow -> Scenario -> Exploration -> Finding -> Patch
C I F S E FD PATCH

1. Concept (C-): Define system building blocks
2. Interaction (I-): Document atomic operations
3. Flow (F-): Map legitimate user journeys
4. Scenario (S-): Hypothesize security violations
5. Exploration (E-): Test hypotheses with BASE vs ATT
6. Finding (FD-): Document confirmed vulnerabilities
7. Patch (PATCH-): Fix, verify, and learn

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Key Specifications

Topic	Location
Framework Introduction	guides/foundations/introduction.md
World Model	guides/foundations/world-model.md
Artifact System	spec/foundations/artifact-system.md
ID Syntax	spec/grammar/01-id-syntax.md
Formal Logic	spec/grammar/03-formal-logic.md

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Automation (Optional)

CFSE is designed to be both human-readable and tool-friendly.

• ARCHITECTURE.yml provides a machine-readable map of the spec (useful for editors, validators, and automation).
• Some supporting material (templates, examples, prompts) may be published separately.

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Classification

• Normative (spec/): Authoritative definitions - source of truth
• Informative (guides/, rfcs/): Explanations, templates, and design discussion scaffolding

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Positioning

CFSE is compatible with many existing practices (threat modeling, red teaming, property-based testing, and formal methods). It is not a replacement for any of them; it is the “evidence-linked structure layer” that makes security reasoning auditable and repeatable.

Depth, Not Surface

Surface approach	CFSE equivalent
Scan for vulnerabilities	Build world model, derive hypotheses from structure
Follow a checklist	Express properties as formal invariants
Run some tests	Systematic explorations with baseline/attack deltas
Write up findings	Evidence-backed findings with trace provenance

See guides/foundations/introduction.md for the full positioning.

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Getting Help

1. Start with guides/foundations/introduction.md
2. Read spec/README.md for the spec map
3. Consult spec/glossary.md for terminology
4. Reference ARCHITECTURE.yml for the complete structure map

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Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md.