Is Electronic Signature Legal?

 

e-signature solution

What is E-signature or Electronic Signature ?

An E-signature is similar to a hand-written sign on a document, it tells who the document is from and that it is “signed” by the “signatory” or we can say the “authorized party.” It can also be called a digital stamp which is unique to the signatory, it is a confirmation that the document is from the signatory and hasn’t been tampered with.

Utility Of E-signatures

Some electronic signatures also involve cryptology which uses various public and private keys it is a form of encryption, which acts like a combination lock and can only work if both the elements are present. For example when a document is sent to the recipient, the signatory’s software and the private key are used to scramble the content present in the text and accordingly the document is encrypted and sent to the respective document. 

app for signing documents

Are E-signatures Legal?

Electronic signatures are legally binding in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and many nations around the world are thereby incorporating and legalizing the use of Electronic signatures. Documents signed online with a legally compliant e-signature software are considered binding and valid similar to the traditional paper and pen documents. Many electronic signatures have been upheld in numerous court cases and in many instances proved to be more effective than paper-based documents. This is because of the robust authentication data captured by the online signature software which provides evidence of who exactly signed the document and gives a precise description as to who, when, and how the signature was made. The major E-signatures laws include the following:

1. E-SIGN Act (U.S.): This act states that the contracts with electronic signature cannot be denied legal effect or ruled unenforceable because they are created electronically or digitally.
2. UETA (U.S.): Developed by the National Conference of Commissioners of Uniform State Laws Developed UETA for bringing consistency to varying state laws regarding the electronic signature and online document execution.
3. PIPEDA (Canada): The Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act specifies how businesses must handle consumer data to ensure utmost security and privacy.
4. European Directive (European Union): It is a wide scale electronic signature law to provide legal guidance and includes clarifications and protections for consumers and businesses who conduct business online with electronic documents.
5. Electronic Communications Act (United Kingdom): Providing guidance on storage, encryption services, and electronic communications for whosoever takes these services is what this act explains.
6. Electronic Transactions Act (Australia): This Act defines a regulatory frame work for electronic transactions and states that no transaction will be invalidated because it is electronic in nature.
   
   Original Article:  http://esignly.tumblr.com/post/111172060106/http-www-esignly-com