Sign a paper document, nothing easier: just take a pen and repeat a gesture outlined a thousand times. But when it comes to affixing an electronic signature , things get complicated. Because the usual instruments – hand and pen – are not solicited. To carry out this operation, you must go through a specific tool: a digital signature platform . We explain to you how to make an electronic signature , step by step, and what benefits you can draw from this process.
Before using an electronic signature, it must be created!
Before visualizing how to get Digital signature, it is essential to make some clarifications. First, the electronic signature is not a simple digital equivalent of the handwritten signature : sign on the screen of a touch pad or scan your usual signature, this is not enough. The process of generating and then using an electronic signature is much more complex.
Then, the legal value of an electronic signature (identical to that of a handwritten signature, since the law of March 13, 2000 introduced it into French law) is based on two conditions: the identity of the signatory must be verifiable through an electronic certificate (issued by a Certification Authority such as CertEurope), and this signature must be affixed through a specific tool – for example, a dedicated web portal – which will seal the commitment of the signatory and guarantee the integrity of the signed document .
Only once the ad hoc certificate in your possession, and access to a secured platform assured, you can sign your dematerialized documents . Only then is it relevant to ask how to make an electronic signature.
How to make an electronic signature?
To give you a specific example of the procedure, we will imagine that you want to electronically sign a document on the CertSign application platform . Here’s how to make an electronic signature, step by step, first from the point of view of the issuer of the request:
1.Log in to the CertSign electronic signature application platform
2.Create a signature collection: by clicking on the dedicated button, located at the top left of your dashboard. In the window that opens, you must give a name to your collection and fill in a signature deadline
3.Add the signers : You can choose from signers already entered on the platform, simply by entering the first letters of the name or email address of the desired person
4.Get the signed document (s) . By clicking on the “Collection” menu in your dashboard, you can always check where the collection of signatures is.
5.Open the document (s) using PDF software such as Acrobat Reader and verify that the signatures have been affixed .
You now know how to make an electronic signature, both on the side of the issuer of the request and on the side of the signatory. As you can see, this is a simple process and a few steps are enough!
