About Touchstone
Touchstone is a local MCP server for AI agents that records actions in a verifiable, tamper-evident log. It signs events on the local machine with an Ed25519 key that never leaves the process, and supports selective field disclosure.
Key features
- 01Canonicalize and sign events locally
- 02Append events to an audit log
- 03Create selective disclosure links
- 04Verify disclosure bundles
- 05View recorder checkpoint state
Use cases
- 01Record actions performed by an AI agent
- 02Reveal selected fields to a reviewer
- 03Let third parties verify disclosed records
MCP support
As a local MCP server, it provides compatible clients with tools for recording, disclosure, verification, and recorder information. Recording is signed locally; the other tools call the remote service using an API key.
Configuration
Remote servers need no local install. Pick your client, then copy the config or install in one click.
https://touchstone.cv/mcpclaude mcp add --transport http cv-touchstone-touchstone https://touchstone.cv/mcp{"mcpServers":{"cv-touchstone-touchstone":{"type":"http","url":"https://touchstone.cv/mcp"}}}Open in Cursor{"servers":{"cv-touchstone-touchstone":{"type":"http","url":"https://touchstone.cv/mcp"}}}Open in VS Code{"mcpServers":{"cv-touchstone-touchstone":{"type":"http","url":"https://touchstone.cv/mcp"}}}{"mcpServers":{"cv-touchstone-touchstone":{"serverUrl":"https://touchstone.cv/mcp"}}}Run commands in a terminal; paste JSON into the client’s MCP config and restart. Servers that need sign-in will prompt on first connect.
https://touchstone.cv/mcpAuth requiredTools
Details
From the project READMEtouchstone-mcp
Local MCP server for Touchstone — record what your agent did into a tamper-evident, externally-anchored log.
This server runs on your machine and holds your Ed25519 signing key. It signs each
event locally and appends it to your recorder, so an agent only has to call
touchstone_record({ event_type, payload }). The key never leaves this process.
Canonicalization (JCS / RFC 8785) is done locally too, so a malicious or compromised server
can't trick you into signing a different commitment than you intended.
Zero dependencies — Node 18+ built-ins only. It's a single file: read it before you trust it.
The remote MCP at
https://touchstone.cv/mcpcan't sign for you (Touchstone never holds your key), so itstouchstone_recordexpects a signature you computed yourself. Run this server when you want frictionless local signing.
Install
# one-off, no install:
npx -y @touchstone-cv/mcp
# or vendor the single file:
curl -O https://touchstone.cv/touchstone-mcp.mjs
# or clone:
git clone https://github.com/Touchstone-CV/touchstone-mcp && cd touchstone-mcp
Configure
Point your MCP client at it over stdio:
{
"mcpServers": {
"touchstone": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@touchstone-cv/mcp"],
"env": {
"TOUCHSTONE_RECORDER": "rec_...",
"TOUCHSTONE_SUBJECT": "<your-colony-sub>",
"TOUCHSTONE_API_KEY": "tsk_...",
"TOUCHSTONE_SIGNING_KEY": "<base64 Ed25519 32-byte seed>"
}
}
}
}
| Env var | Required | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
TOUCHSTONE_RECORDER | yes | Your recorder public id (rec_…) |
TOUCHSTONE_SUBJECT | to record | Your Colony sub — the recorder's subject |
TOUCHSTONE_API_KEY | yes | API key minted on the recorder (tsk_…) |
TOUCHSTONE_SIGNING_KEY | to record | base64 Ed25519 32-byte seed — kept by you, never sent |
TOUCHSTONE_KEY_FILE | alt | Path to JSON {"seed_b64":"…"} instead of the inline seed |
TOUCHSTONE_BASE_URL | no | Defaults to https://touchstone.cv |
To get a recorder + key, see touchstone.cv/developers — agents can self-provision one with their own Colony token (OAuth Token Exchange, RFC 8693), no browser required.
Tools
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
touchstone_record | JCS-canonicalizes payload, signs the commitment locally, appends the entry |
touchstone_disclose | Create a shareable /d/<token> disclosure link (proxies to the service) |
touchstone_verify | Verify a disclosure bundle (proxies to the service) |
touchstone_recorder_info | Fetch your recorder's public info / checkpoint state |
Only touchstone_record uses your signing key; the rest proxy to the remote service over your API key.
Selective field disclosure
Call touchstone_record({ event_type, payload, selective_disclosure: true }) to commit each
payload field separately — the client computes a salted-field Merkle root locally and signs
that as payload_hash, storing the per-field salts. Later you can reveal only a subset:
touchstone_disclose({ seqs: [n], reveal: { n: ["field_a", "field_b"] } })
Revealed fields ship with Merkle proofs against payload_hash (which your signature already
covers); withheld fields are salt-bound and their values never appear in the disclosure. The
root computation matches the server and the verifiers byte-for-byte.
Verifying the log
A disclosure can be checked by anyone, with no trust in Touchstone — in the
browser verifier, the standalone
verify.php, or the
gossip_check.py split-view checker. Those tools are served
from the site (and are each a single auditable file); this repo is just the recording client.
License
Comments
New to MCP?
From what the protocol is to installing your first server, these answers cover most first questions.
An open protocol that defines how AI applications connect to external tools and data in a uniform way. Clients talk to the model; MCP servers provide tools, resources and prompt templates. They exchange standard messages, so one server can be reused by many clients.