Two-Tier Dynamic RBAC Specification
Architectural specification of blackLen's access control model separating Organization Workspace Governance (Tier 1) from Project Engagement Execution (Tier 2).
blackLen enforces a strict Two-Tier Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) model reflecting real-world security consultancy, red team, and client collaboration workflows.
Access Control Overview
Access boundaries are separated into two distinct layers:
- Tier 1 — Organization Workspace Level: Controls company-wide identity, member invitations, and shared resource templates.
- Tier 2 — Project Engagement Level: Isolates scoped targets, checklist execution states, and findings for a specific assessment.
Tier 1: Organization Roles
Organization roles govern workspace identity, team membership, and global resource templates:
| Role | Description | Key Capabilities |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | Creator or primary owner of the workspace. | Full administrative authority (["*"]), transfer ownership, and delete organization. |
| Admin | Operations manager or practice lead. | Invite/remove team members, manage shared tools, global scripts, payload templates, and projects. |
| Member | Active penetration tester or security engineer. | Create projects, author custom scripts and payloads, execute assigned engagements. |
| Viewer | Executive client or external observer. | Read-only observation across public templates and shared assets. |
Tier 2: Project Engagement Roles
Project roles isolate access to specific assessment targets, checklist execution states, and findings:
1. Project Admin
- Role: Engagement lead or principal penetration tester.
- Capabilities: Add/remove project members, modify asset scopes, assign checklists, update project status, and delete the project.
2. Project Editor
- Role: Senior tester or scope manager.
- Capabilities: Add/modify in-scope assets, create and customize checklist structures, and add testing notes.
3. Project Tester
- Role: Active penetration tester or security engineer.
- Capabilities: Execute checklist steps, toggle item verification statuses, link tool commands/scripts, and document evidence.
4. Project Auditor ("Tick-Mark Only")
- Role: Compliance auditor, quality reviewer, or junior tester.
- Capabilities: Toggle item verification statuses (
Pending,In Progress,Pass,Fail,N/A,Blocked,Skipped) and attach execution notes. - Strict Restriction: Cannot add, rename, or delete checklist structure, items, or scoped assets.
5. Project Viewer
- Role: Client contact, CISO, or executive stakeholder.
- Capabilities: Real-time read-only inspection of scoped assets, checklist completion progress, and evidence notes.
The Golden Rules of Governance
1. The Clearance Ceiling Rule (Strictly Enforced)
An organization user with the Viewer role can only hold the Viewer role on individual projects within the organization. Both project member assignment and update endpoints enforce this rule synchronously.
2. Ambient Organization Admin Inheritance
Organization Owners and Admins maintain ambient administrative authority across all projects within their organization workspace, ensuring operational oversight without requiring manual per-project invitations.