Scanned signatures are a risk. Switch to Secured Signing

Tim Osborn, of Osborn Law, wrote recently in the Newcastle Herald about a court case that highlights the risks in relying on scanned signatures as a form of signing. It’s a reminder that if you need to sign, then you should sign with a tamper-proof digital signature that is unique to you and your document.

Nothing else is worth the risk.

The Legal Pitfall of “Paste-and-Click” Signatures

In the case in question, an electronic image of the signature was readily accessible on the corporate network. The court held that documents signed by simply pasting the image into a document were not legally binding.

It was not possible to demonstrate that the owner of the signature had personally applied their signature to the document or given their explicit consent to do so. The result was a loss of business and a costly court case—a disaster that could have been avoided by using a digital signature service like Secured Signing.

Why Secured Signing is Superior to Scanned Images

Signing a document using Secured Signing is a simple “click-to-sign” process that differs from scanned signatures in several critical ways.

1. Automated Audit Logs and Record Keeping

Secured Signing gives you an automated log of every action performed in the signing process. This is one of the key pieces of advice Mr. Osborn gives in his article: Good quality record keeping is invaluable. It demonstrates that a signed document is evidence of a legally binding agreement.

By automating this log, your team doesn’t have to waste time keeping manual records of who did what and when.

2. Robust Identity Validation

A key problem in the referenced court case was the inability to prove who actually applied the signature image. Secured Signing solves this by creating unique credentials for each signer that only they can access.

For even higher stakes, you can add video confirmation to the process. This captures a brief recording of the person during the act of signing, creating a document that cannot be reasonably challenged.

3. The Power of PKI-Based Security

Unlike a mere graphical representation of a name, PKI-based digital signatures provide sophisticated methods to “seal” the document. This creates an irrevocable, unforgeable, and non-transferable link between the signer and the document, ensuring it is tamper-proof.

Protect Your Business Today

Inviting people to sign your documents with Secured Signing is quick, simple, inexpensive, and significantly reduces your legal risk.

Help us spread the word. Share this with your friends and colleagues so they can enjoy the benefits of secure digital signatures. They can start signing online today with one of our Freeway evaluation accounts.