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15. Blocked / Status Rules

Status codes and blocking logic are defined in §11 Card Status Enforcement. This section covers the escalation model and warning behaviour that precede a final block.

Escalation model​

Not every suspicious event results in an immediate block. The system distinguishes between:

  • Hard block — immediate and automatic. Triggered by a failed cryptographic check (→ BLOCKED_TAMPER) or a backend fraud signal (→ BLOCKED_FRAUD). No operator confirmation required.
  • Soft warning — a suspicious condition is logged and surfaced to the operator, but the card continues operating. Used when the evidence is ambiguous (e.g. a single near-limit transaction, minor clock drift).
  • Admin block — a deliberate operator action, always initiated via the Station app with backend confirmation (→ BLOCKED_ADMIN).

Warning-to-block escalation​

A soft warning may escalate to a hard block if:

  • The same card triggers warnings repeatedly across multiple reconciliation windows.
  • A backend-side anomaly detector flags the card based on aggregated event history.
  • An operator reviews the warnings and confirms a block via the Station app.

Behaviour summary​

StatusWritesReadsRecovery
ACTIVE✅✅N/A
BLOCKED_TAMPER❌✅Station reissue + backend auth
BLOCKED_FRAUD❌✅Station reissue + backend auth
BLOCKED_EXPIRED❌✅Station renewal
BLOCKED_ADMIN❌✅Station reissue + operator confirmation