
# Interactive Mermaid‑Based Evidence Provenance Dashboard for Real‑Time Questionnaire Audits

## Introduction  

Security questionnaires, compliance audits, and vendor risk assessments have traditionally been bottlenecks for fast‑moving SaaS companies. While AI can draft answers in seconds, auditors and internal reviewers still ask, *“Where did that answer come from? Has it changed since the last audit?”* The answer lies in **evidence provenance**—the ability to trace every response back to its source, version, and approval trail.

Procurize’s next‑generation feature stack introduces an **interactive Mermaid dashboard** that visualises evidence provenance in real time. The dashboard is powered by a **Dynamic Compliance Knowledge Graph (DCKG)**, continuously synchronised with policy stores, document repositories, and external compliance feeds. By rendering the graph as an intuitive Mermaid diagram, security teams can:

* **Navigate** the lineage of each answer with a click.
* **Validate** evidence freshness via automated policy‑drift alerts.
* **Export** audit‑ready snapshots that embed the visual provenance into compliance reports.

The following sections unpack the architecture, the Mermaid model, integration patterns, and best‑practice roll‑out steps.

---

## 1. Why Provenance Matters in Automated Questionnaires  

| Pain Point | Traditional Remedy | Residual Risk |
|------------|--------------------|---------------|
| **Answer Staleness** | Manual “last‑updated” notes | Missed policy changes |
| **Opaque Source** | Textual footnotes | Auditors can’t verify |
| **Version‑Control Chaos** | Separate Git repos for docs | Inconsistent snapshots |
| **Collaboration Overhead** | Email threads on approvals | Lost approvals, duplicated work |

Provenance eliminates these gaps by **binding each AI‑generated answer to a unique evidence node** in a graph that records:

* **Source Document** (policy file, third‑party attestation, control evidence)
* **Version Hash** (cryptographic fingerprint ensuring immutability)
* **Owner / Approver** (human or bot identity)
* **Timestamp** (automatic UTC time)
* **Policy Drift Flag** (auto‑generated by the Real‑Time Drift Engine)

When an auditor clicks on an answer in the dashboard, the system instantly expands the node, revealing all of the above metadata.

---

## 2. Core Architecture  

Below is a high‑level Mermaid diagram of the provenance pipeline. The diagram uses **double‑quoted node labels** as required by the specification.

```mermaid
graph TD
    subgraph AI Engine
        A["LLM Answer Generator"]
        B["Prompt Manager"]
    end
    subgraph Knowledge Graph
        KG["Dynamic Compliance KG"]
        V["Evidence Version Store"]
        D["Drift Detection Service"]
    end
    subgraph UI Layer
        UI["Interactive Mermaid Dashboard"]
        C["Audit Export Service"]
    end
    subgraph Integrations
        R["Policy Repo (Git)"]
        S["Document Store (S3)"]
        M["External Compliance Feed"]
    end

    B --> A
    A --> KG
    KG --> V
    V --> D
    D --> KG
    KG --> UI
    UI --> C
    R --> V
    S --> V
    M --> KG
```

**Key flows**

1. **Prompt Manager** selects a context‑aware prompt that references relevant KG nodes.
2. **LLM Answer Generator** produces a draft answer.
3. The answer is **registered** in the KG as a new *Answer Node* with edges to underlying *Evidence Nodes*.
4. **Evidence Version Store** writes a cryptographic hash of each source document.
5. **Drift Detection Service** continuously compares stored hashes against live policy snapshots; any mismatch automatically flags the answer for review.
6. **Interactive Dashboard** reads the KG via a GraphQL endpoint, rendering Mermaid code on‑the‑fly.
7. **Audit Export Service** bundles the current Mermaid SVG, provenance JSON, and answer text into a single PDF package.

---

## 3. Building the Mermaid Dashboard  

### 3.1 Data‑to‑Diagram Transformation  

The UI layer queries the KG for a specific questionnaire ID. The response includes a nested structure:

```json
{
  "questionId": "Q-101",
  "answer": "We encrypt data at rest using AES‑256.",
  "evidence": [
    {
      "docId": "policy-iso27001",
      "versionHash": "0x9f2c...",
      "approvedBy": "alice@example.com",
      "timestamp": "2025-11-20T14:32:00Z",
      "drift": false
    },
    {
      "docId": "cloud‑kbs‑report",
      "versionHash": "0x4c1a...",
      "approvedBy": "bob@example.com",
      "timestamp": "2025-09-05T09:10:00Z",
      "drift": true
    }
  ]
}
```

A **client‑side renderer** converts each evidence entry into a Mermaid sub‑graph:

```mermaid
graph LR
    A["Answer Q‑101"] --> E1["policy‑iso27001"]
    A --> E2["cloud‑kbs‑report"]
    E1 -->|hash: 0x9f2c| H1["Hash"]
    E2 -->|hash: 0x4c1a| H2["Hash"]
    E2 -->|drift| D["⚠️ Drift Detected"]
```

The UI overlays visual cues:

* **Green node** – evidence up‑to‑date.
* **Red node** – drift flagged.
* **Lock icon** – cryptographic hash verified.

> **Note:** The reference to *policy‑iso27001* aligns with the ISO 27001 standard — see the official specification for details: [ISO 27001](https://www.iso.org/standard/27001).

### 3.2 Interactive Features  

| Feature | Interaction | Outcome |
|---------|--------------|---------|
| **Node Click** | Click on any evidence node | Opens a modal with full document preview, version diff, and approval comments |
| **Toggle Drift View** | Switch in toolbar | Highlights only nodes with drift = true |
| **Export Snapshot** | Click “Export” button | Generates SVG + JSON provenance bundle for auditors |
| **Search** | Type a doc ID or owner email | Auto‑focuses matching sub‑graph |

All interactions are **client‑side only**, avoiding extra round‑trips. The underlying Mermaid code is stored in a hidden `<textarea>` for easy copy‑paste.

---

## 4. Integrating Provenance Into Existing Workflows  

### 4.1 CI/CD Compliance Gate  

Add a step in your pipeline that **fails the build** if any answer in the upcoming release has an unresolved drift flag. Example GitHub Action:

```yaml
name: Evidence Provenance Gate
on: [pull_request]
jobs:
  provenance-check:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - name: Run Drift Scanner
        run: |
          curl -s https://api.procurize.io/drift?pr=${{ github.event.pull_request.number }} \
          | jq '.drifted | length > 0' && exit 1 || exit 0
```

### 4.2 Slack / Teams Alerting  

Configure the **Drift Detection Service** to push a concise Mermaid snippet into a channel whenever drift occurs. The snippet is automatically rendered by supported bots, giving security leads instant visibility.

### 4.3 Legal Review Automation  

Legal teams can add a **“Legal Sign‑Off”** edge to evidence nodes. The dashboard then displays a lock icon by the node, signalling that the evidence has passed a legal checklist.

---

## 5. Security & Privacy Considerations  

| Concern | Mitigation |
|---------|------------|
| **Sensitive Document Exposure** | Store raw documents in encrypted S3 buckets; the dashboard only renders metadata and hash, not file contents. |
| **Tampering of Provenance Data** | Use **EIP‑712** style signatures for each graph transaction; any modification invalidates the hash. |
| **Data Residency** | Deploy the KG and evidence store in the same region as your primary compliance data (EU, US‑East, etc.). |
| **Access Control** | Leverage Procurize’s RBAC model: only users with `provenance:read` can view the dashboard; `provenance:edit` required for approvals. |

---

## 6. Real‑World Impact: A Case Study  

**Company:** SecureFinTech Ltd.  
**Scenario:** Quarterly **[SOC 2](https://secureframe.com/hub/soc-2/what-is-soc-2)** audit required evidence for 182 encryption controls.  
**Before Dashboard:** Manual collation took 12 days; auditors questioned evidence freshness.  
**After Dashboard:**  

| Metric | Baseline | With Dashboard |
|--------|----------|----------------|
| Average Answer Turn‑around | 4.2 hours | **1.1 hours** |
| Drift‑related Re‑work | 28% of answers | **3%** |
| Auditor Satisfaction Score (1‑5) | 2.8 | **4.7** |
| Time to Export Audit Package | 6 hours | **45 minutes** |

The provenance visualization cut the audit preparation timeline by **70 %**, and the automated drift alerts saved an estimated **160 person‑hours annually**.

---

## 7. Step‑by‑Step Implementation Guide  

1. **Enable Knowledge Graph Sync** – Connect your policy Git repo, document store, and external compliance feeds in Procurize settings.  
2. **Activate Provenance Service** – Turn on “Evidence Versioning & Drift Detection” in the platform admin console.  
3. **Configure Mermaid Dashboard** – Add `dashboard.provenance.enabled = true` to the `procurize.yaml` configuration file.  
4. **Define Approval Workflows** – Use the “Workflow Builder” to attach “Legal Sign‑Off” and “Security Owner” steps to each evidence node.  
5. **Train Teams** – Run a 30‑minute live demo covering node interaction, drift handling, and export procedures.  
6. **Embed in Auditor Portals** – Use the provided IFrame snippet to host the dashboard inside your external audit portal.  

```html
<iframe src="https://dashboard.procurize.io/q/2025-Q101"
        width="100%" height="800"
        style="border:none;"></iframe>
```

7. **Monitor Metrics** – Track “Drift Events”, “Export Count”, and “Avg. Answer Time” on the Procurize analytics dashboard to quantify ROI.

---

## 8. Future Enhancements  

| Roadmap Item | Description |
|--------------|-------------|
| **AI‑Driven Drift Prediction** | Use LLM‑based trend analysis on policy change logs to predict drift before it occurs. |
| **Cross‑Tenant Provenance Sharing** | Federated KG mode that enables partner companies to view shared evidence without exposing raw documents. |
| **Voice‑Activated Navigation** | Integrate with Procurize Voice Assistant to let reviewers ask “Show me the source of answer 34”. |
| **Live Collaboration** | Real‑time multi‑user editing of evidence nodes, with presence indicators rendered directly in Mermaid. |

---

## 9. Conclusion  

Procurize’s **interactive Mermaid‑based evidence provenance dashboard** transforms the opaque world of security questionnaire automation into a transparent, auditable, and collaborative experience. By coupling AI‑generated answers with a live compliance knowledge graph, organizations gain **instant lineage visibility**, **automated drift mitigation**, and **audit‑ready artifacts**—all without sacrificing speed.

Adopting this visual provenance layer not only shortens audit cycles but also builds confidence among regulators, partners, and customers that your security claims are **backed by immutable, real‑time evidence**.