METHODOLOGY

Every conclusion carries its evidence state and assessment boundary.

SCOUTz records what it checked, when it checked it, which source supported the result, and whether missing coverage limits the conclusion.

EVIDENCE · INSIGHT · PROOF

What you can know before they let you in, and after.

01

Before consent

Published domain, DNS, email authentication, certificates and external evidence.

02

With read-only consent

Supported Microsoft 365 identity, app, permission, licensing and configuration evidence.

03

Never inferred

No message bodies, private files, chats or prompts. Unread is not clean.

35 public sources for a domain scan; 92 sources with read-only Microsoft 365 consent. Sources may be unavailable; reviews are coverage-dependent, not universal.
SCOUTz raccoon inspecting evidence with a magnifying glass

How scans become supported conclusions.

PUBLISH THE UNIT

Breadth without inflated math.

Domain and cloud are different access layers. The platform total also includes fusion and correlation passes that run on top of collector output.

PUBLIC DOMAIN

35 · 123

Collectors run · distinct findings they can produce. Public records only.

READ-ONLY CLOUD

92 · 370

Collectors run · distinct findings they can produce, including the public-domain roster.

PLATFORM-WIDE

601

Distinct finding types across 91 emitting modules and correlation passes.

Every finding is explained in business terms.

All 601 finding types carry an authored explanation, consequence, recommendation, and the evidence they were drawn from. The build fails if one is missing.

538 registered check IDs keep every finding defensible. The ledger separates 440 scored findings, 107 context observations, and 22 declared non-reads. A non-read is never a clean result.

INDEPENDENT DISCOVERY

Compare what was recorded with what can be independently supported.

PSA, RMM, and specialist tools remain valuable. SCOUTz discovers, observes, normalizes, correlates, and asks what the combined evidence actually supports.

PSAWhat was recorded
RMMWhat is managed
SECURITY TOOLSWhat each product sees
→
SCOUTzDISCOVEROBSERVENORMALIZECORRELATECOMPARE
→
SUPPORTED CONCLUSIONCondition · evidence · boundary · unknowns · outcome

ASSESSMENT BOUNDARY

A focused vendor review and a client assessment answer different questions.

Specialist reviews are not dishonest; they were designed for a narrower job. SCOUTz begins with the company and leaves the implementation choice with the MSP.

SPECIALIZED VENDOR ASSESSMENT

01

CATEGORY

The vendor's specialty

02

SCANNER

Evidence in that boundary

03

FINDINGS

Needs related to that capability

04

SOLUTION

The vendor's implementation

SCOUTz CLIENT ASSESSMENT

01

COMPANY

Start with the organization

02

DISCOVERY

Gather supported evidence

03

CONDITION

Name what needs attention

04

OUTCOME

Define what better means

05

MSP CHOOSES

Product, service, process, project—or nothing

FINDINGWeak authentication coverage
→
SCOUTz ANSWERSWho is affected? Why does it matter? What supports it? What should change? How can it be verified?
→
MSP DECIDESExisting product · configuration · new product · process · project · nothing

EVIDENCE STATES

Unknown is not clean—and confidence is not theater.

These are distinct evidence states, not a mathematically linear score ladder.

01

VERIFIED

Directly supported or completed validation

02

OBSERVED

Seen in the named source at the recorded time

03

INFERRED

Supported, but not directly proven

04

POSSIBLE

Plausible and still needs investigation

05

UNKNOWN

The source cannot establish the state

06

UNREADABLE

The source could not be read

PROVIDER RETURNS 403→NOT ASSESSED≠NO RISK FOUND

REAL APP CAPTURE · CLIENT DETAILS REMOVED

SCOUTz finding detail: anonymized product capture
Real Microsoft 365 review · client details removed. Dated example, not a claim about your environment.
Vendor neutrality is part of finding truth.

A finding describes the condition, evidence, affected object, unknowns, and recommended outcome—not an automatic instruction to buy Vendor X. Any future vendor recommendation must be explicit, transparent, clearly separate from the underlying finding, and unable to change what the evidence says.

Vendor assessment or client assessment? →

VERIFIED

Directly supported by a named authoritative source or completed validation.

OBSERVED

Seen by SCOUTz from the disclosed source at the recorded time.

INFERRED

Supported by evidence, but not directly proven by the available source.

POSSIBLE

A plausible condition or opportunity that still requires investigation.

UNKNOWN

The available evidence cannot establish the state. Unknown is not clean.

UNREADABLE

The source could not be read because of availability, format, access, or permission.

Assessment coverage is separate from the finding result.

ASSESSED · PARTIAL · NOT_ASSESSED · PERMISSION_LIMITED · LICENSE_LIMITED. A permission- or license-limited source never becomes a clean score by omission.

DOMAIN BOUNDARY

Public signals only.

DNS, email authentication, HTTPS, certificates, headers, subdomains, exposed services, and related external evidence. No proof of internal controls, recovery, people, or process.

MICROSOFT 365 BOUNDARY

Customer-approved configuration and metadata.

Supported identity, application, security, and managed-device context. No mail, files, chats, documents, prompts, or automatic changes.

The access method is part of the evidence context.

A public observation and an authorized tenant record can support different kinds of claims. Customer authorization can strengthen the available source, but it never removes coverage, permission, license, provider, or readability limits.

Why permission follows the question →
QUESTION

Define the answer needed.

Start with the business or technical question instead of the broadest API permission available.

EVIDENCE

Choose the necessary source.

Use the least intrusive source that can responsibly support the answer.

ACCESS

Explain and authorize.

If deeper evidence is necessary, state the purpose and boundary before collection begins.

Are the SCOUTz screenshots real?

Every image labeled Real Product is captured from the working application and anonymized. Every designed explanation is labeled Illustrative. We do not use AI-generated interfaces as evidence that a feature exists.

Read the authenticity standard →

Your next prospect meeting is already on the calendar.

Bring dated evidence, clear limits, and useful questions.

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