How to use a Digital Signature

As suggested by the name, it refers to the digital equivalent of a handwritten signature or a stamped seal. It is being created using an algorithm or mathematical technique which is used to validate the authenticity and integrity of a message or an electronic document such as an Acrobat (.pdf) document or software.

This type of signature used to offer a high level of inherent security to any form of an electronic document. It is not possible every time to sign a document physically, digital signature comes in handy in such cases.

Using a digital signature will prevent the chances of tampering and fraud in case of any electronic communication which contains digitized documents.

Just like a manual signature, digital signature assigns origination, identity, and status to an electronic document.

It inherently provides a consent form by the person signing the document. Digital Signatures used not only for signing the documents but also used to authorize or encrypt transaction letters to any other form of electronic communication.

The best thing about the digital signature is that it is widely accepted in all application processes and legal work which includes government organizations, private firms, publishing offices or a bank or a private firm.

A digital signature has the same validity and worth as a more traditional form of handwritten signature on paper.

Components of the Digital Signature

Name

The name of the individual is the first and foremost thing that a digital signature includes. Anyone who is using the signature or authorizing a digital document for distribution or access must have a name in the signature. It reduces any chances of fraud that may be caused by another person sharing the same name.

Personal Information

Apart from the full name of the user, it is must to have contact details and email address also mentioned in the digital signature. It helps in easy locating of the person. This data is however encrypted and not accessible by every individual to ensure the privacy of the user.

Public Key

Another important element of a digital signature is a public key. It is unique to each digital signature generated or issued. This is a key used for encryption of the document being authorized. It is essential for the verification process. The expiry date of the digital signature also determined by its public key. It is also useful when there is a need to reset the signature.

Serial Number

It is another component that acts as a unique identifier of a digital signature. It is used by a certification authority. It also holds prime importance to ensure the viability of a digital signature.

How does a digital signature work?

 The working of the digital signature is based on the combined functionality of both public and private keys. The  functionality of a digital signature is only a cryptography that forms the basis of this system. The pairing of public or private keys is used to encrypt or decrypt a document while sending it to a receiver to verify the signature. The private key has been kept with the owner of the document and is confidential. On the other hand, public keys shared freely.

The concept being used by the technology called ‘hash’ which is used to generate a unique identifier termed as a signature, through which the document is signed.

Every document has a unique hash and thus a unique signature. It is being done to ensure that the document is unique to the owner and no one else can tamper, reproduce or make duplicate copies of the document or the signature.

The digital signature properly locks the document for further editing and allows only authorized users for the same. If any changes being made without such authorization, it is considered as illegal, forged and invalid.

Actual Sending of the document

An individual who wants to send a duly signed digital document will make use of his private key to get a hash and then send the document to the intended sender. The document after that, sent to the receiver with the help of the public key. The receiver after that, validate the document using his public key and ascertain the authenticity of the document.

The hash value of the received document should match with the hash value of the original document and the identity is established and the document can be opened by the user if there is a match.

Benefits of Using Digital Signature

Key benefits of the digital signature are as follows:

• Digital signature cannot be edited or tampered once the signature has been created and assigned.
• At times, when you live geographically far away from the receiver, you can make use of the digital signature for signing the documents.
• The Digital signature process is fast, efficient and extremely secure.
• Digital signature saves thousands of dollars for the organization ranging from saving cost in printing or publishing of documents in their physical format.
• The system promotes security and legal compliance while ensuring data integrity at the same time.
  
• This completely digital technology is compliant with the ‘Go Green’ resolution as it promotes carbon/paper-saving practices.
• Unique to the owner

Ways to choose the right Digital Signature:

Always make sure that the digital signature chosen by you, should be unique and associated with only a single person.  Alteration in the digital signature is not allowed at the later stage. It is a must to ensure integrity and uniqueness in the system.

Multi-signature support

Digital signature should be designed in such a way that it supports the single document signing. It should be possible for more than one person sitting in different locations to sign into documents at a single time. If the digital signature prevents this, it could result in low productivity.

It would reduce the efficiency of a company especially in the case of companies that have an office located all over the globe.

Transferability

It should be possible to transfer the documents to another location or a third party. This feature is considered essential to decode the signal and to verify its authenticity. It allows an individual to get access to the document.  So, the digital signature should be readable using third-party compatible software.

User-friendliness

It is considered one of the key aspects of choosing the right digital signature. If your signature is ideal, it will not take more than 10 seconds to write. In more than 2-3 clicks of the mouse, it is sent to the intended recipient. It will ensure higher productivity and fast processing in case of large signatures where digital signatures are widely used.

Secure

It is another important aspect of digital signature that it should be safe and secure to use. So, documents that are signed with a digital signature that it does not allow any alteration in the future. An attempt to tamper or break the digital signature should easily be detected or highlighted through an automated alarm.

Compliance

One must always take care of the safety of signature; it is considered to valid and legal signature such as a physical signature on a document in a court of law. You must adhere to all the application standard regulations and protocols set up to ensure the authenticity of the digital signature. Using digital signature guarantee the integrity, confidentiality or non-repudiation of the document.

Process Automation 

A good digital signature allows automation processing in case of bulk processing. Many government, banks or private firms may be required to sign and send the documents in bulk. In such a case, the usage of digital signature can come in very handy.

All the documents can be signed quickly and in a short time thereby reducing the processing time significantly and eliminating the need for human intervention in the process.

Applications of Digital Signature 

It is another component that acts as a unique identifier of a digital signature. It is used by a certification authority. It also holds prime importance to ensure the viability of a digital signature.

Some of the places are:

Law Firms

Legal documents and other letters can be digitally signed using a digital signature, thereby complying with the legal process. This allows instant interaction with the clients even when they are not physically available in the firm. It saves time, money and effort.

Insurance Companies

The process of digital signature has worked wonders for insurance companies. Insurance companies are required to send thousands of policy papers daily to their clients. 

Earlier they used to send these documents through courier or mail but with the introduction of digital signatures, all the documents can now be securely shared electronically without the need to send them out physically.

Mortgage Lenders

Most of the mortgage companies are now using the system of digital signatures to sign their documents. Both the firm and clients can make use of this technology while communicating and exchanging documents with each other.

Colleges and Universities

Many documents and transcripts that need a signature cannot be sent through emails. Hence students can now easily make use of digital technology and send documents that are digitally signed to the universities and receive them back in the same format using the same procedure.

Creating and using digital signature for businesses is a very important and efficient way of speeding up transmitting messages and securely exchanging information online. This is used both for personal and business matters and is an effective way to handle documents and authorize them almost immediately.