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What is

What is an electronic signature?

Court-enforceable. Same legal weight as wet ink. Three tiers under eIDAS.

An electronic signature is any electronic process indicating consent to a record — from a typed name, to a drawn signature on a touchscreen, to a click on an 'I agree' button. When paired with a proper audit trail, electronic signatures are court-enforceable in most of the world.

Definition

an electronic signature

An electronic signature is a digital indication of consent (typed name, drawn signature, or accept-click) on a document, court-enforceable under eIDAS (EU), ESIGN, and UETA (US) when the audit trail captures who signed, when, from where, and what they consented to.

What it is

The core elements.

A digital mark of consent — typed, drawn, or clicked.
An audit trail capturing identity, timestamp, IP, device, and document hash.
A certificate of completion attached to the signed document.
Optional ID verification (government ID check) for high-stakes envelopes.

Why it matters

What changes when you use it.

Speed — sign in 30 seconds instead of mailing paper.
Cost — eliminate printing, scanning, mailing.
Compliance — court-enforceable in most jurisdictions.
Auditability — every action logged immutably.

How it works

In a typical workflow.

Pick an e-signature tool that complies with eIDAS/ESIGN/UETA.
Upload your document and drop signature/date/initial fields.
Add signers in the order they should sign (sequential, parallel, or in-person).
Hit send. Signers receive an email with a link, sign in their browser.
Tamper-evident certificate of completion attaches to the signed file.

Quick facts

Cite-safe specifications.

Legal framework (US)	ESIGN (federal, 2000) + UETA (state, 49 states)
Legal framework (EU)	eIDAS Regulation 910/2014
Three eIDAS tiers	Simple (SES) → Advanced (AES) → Qualified (QES)
Life sciences	21 CFR Part 11 for FDA-regulated workflows
Court enforcement	Generally equivalent to handwritten signature

Common questions

About an electronic signature

Are electronic signatures legally binding?

Yes, in most jurisdictions. eIDAS (EU), ESIGN and UETA (US), and equivalent frameworks elsewhere recognize electronic signatures as legally binding when both parties consented to do business electronically and the audit trail captures identity, intent, and tamper-evidence.

Do I need a qualified electronic signature (QES)?

Only for specific cases where local law mandates a handwritten-equivalent — real-estate transactions in some EU countries, certain financial agreements. Most B2B contracts only require SES or AES.

What's the difference between electronic and digital signature?

Electronic signature is the legal concept (any digital mark of consent). Digital signature is a specific cryptographic implementation using public-key cryptography. All digital signatures are electronic; not vice versa.

How do I verify an electronic signature?

Open the signed document's certificate of completion. It contains the signer's verified identity, IP, device, consent timestamp, and document hash. The hash lets you verify the document hasn't been altered since signing.

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