01 / What each boundary answers
Compare the decision, not the label.
Pomerium documents continuous context-aware authorization on proxied routes using identity and policy.
Ask how an agent’s task, grant and exact mutation parameters reach the final executor and how outcome evidence is correlated.
02 / Same operating case
Which request must be stopped?
An agent passes a protected route but asks the upstream API to delete a production workload.
Evaluation exercise
Send a protected-route request for a read and a destructive DELETE. Examine the Pomerium policy inputs and the upstream API’s action check, including any alternate route.
03 / Architecture fit
How the controls can compose
A proxied route can be a strong first boundary; the upstream service can enforce effect-specific policy when it has richer context.
No claim is made that Pomerium lacks fine-grained policies; coverage depends on request attributes and topology.
04 / Evidence
Prove the decision and the effect separately.
Keep route decision, agent/task identity, upstream delete request, executor decision and workload state.
Primary sources