Glossary
Early Draft
This specification is at an early draft stage. Ideas are open for change and debate. A lot of the content was developed with the help of Claude AI.
Glossary
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| VRP | Vera Request Protocol. The set of HTTP header conventions for human Vera browser traffic. |
| X-Vera-Token | Signed JWT from the identity provider containing subscription status and user context. Short-lived (1h TTL). |
| X-Vera-Verify | Network verification signal. Proves telecom network connection (= human). Not available to bots. |
| Publisher key | Short identifier for a publisher in the Vera wallet system (e.g. spiegel, zeit). |
| Human score | Composite score 0.0–1.0 for human verification. >= 0.85 is considered verified. |
| Chromium fork | Vera's implementation model: a direct fork of the Chromium source with a clean /vera/ directory and 3 minimal patches. |
| NavigationThrottle | Chromium extension point used by Vera to intercept 402 responses before page rendering. |
| URLRequest Delegate | Chromium extension point used by Vera to attach the three request headers. |
| JTI | JWT ID. One-time nonce in the Vera token for replay protection. |
| Vera-exclusive | Publisher mode: content accessible only to Vera users. |
| Vera template | HTML template without popups, cookie banners, and SEO filler text. |
| PPR | Pay per Read. Micropayment for individual articles via the Vera wallet (fiat, for humans). |
| Network verification signal | Telecom carrier-based signal that proves a request originates from a real human connection. |
| Vera SSO | European SSO standard. Identity and consent layer for human Vera users. |
| RequestClassifier | SDK component that classifies incoming requests as VERA_HUMAN, AI_AGENT, STANDARD_BROWSER, or UNKNOWN_BOT. |
| Three-channel model | Vera's core architectural principle: one publisher endpoint, three delivery paths. |
| Unified Gateway | Central SDK entry point with automatic routing to VRP and standard paywall. |
| OWL | Not used in Vera. The OpenAI Web Layer concept (separate process architecture) was evaluated and rejected in favor of a leaner direct fork approach. |
Changelog
v1.2.0-draft (April 2025)
- Updated: Chapter 1: architecture fully revised
- Removed OWL process layer (too complex, not needed)
- Direct Chromium fork as implementation model (like Brave, Edge, Opera)
- Fork directory structure (
/vera/+ 3 patches) fully documented - Both Chromium extension points documented with C++ code (URLRequest, NavigationThrottle)
- System diagram simplified: single process, no IPC
- Comparison table with other Chromium forks added
- Team requirement reduced: from 2–3 to 1 senior Chromium engineer
- Updated: Full translation from German to English
v1.1.0-draft (April 2025)
- Added: Chapter 2: Traffic classification and three-channel model
- Updated: Chapter 5: HTTP 402 for Vera browser
- Updated: Chapter 14: SDK with UnifiedGateway
v1.0.0-draft (April 2025)
- Initial version
Versioning
This specification follows Semantic Versioning. Breaking changes increment the major version. Publisher SDKs must maintain backward compatibility within a major version.
Current: 1.2.0-draft
Planned: 1.0.0 with public beta Q3 2025
Vera e.V. (in formation) · vera.browser · Internal working document · April 2025