What Is An Electronic Signature?

E-Signatures can be used to quickly sign any document

Some History

At a high level in the United States with the passage of the E-Sign Act in 2000 basically gave documents that are electronically signed the same legal protections or enforceability as those that are signed the traditional way with pen and paper. Most inustialized countries also have similar laws to the E-Sign Act, which basically provides the same legal protections. In other words, just because a document is e-signed doesn't mean that it can't be enforced just like paper.

What Exactly Is An Electronic Signature?

The law defines electronica signatures as "an electronic sound, symbol, or process, attached to or logically associated with a contract or other record and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record". What does that mean? Let's break it down.

• Sound - This can be your voice, vocal confirmation, etc.
• Symbol - An image of your signature, a typed version of your signature, an image of yourself perhaps, or any other type of image reprsentative of the signer.
• Process - This one is a little more complex, but put in its simplest form it's like going from step 1 to step 3 where everyone understands that step 3 is where it is e-signed.

This covers e-signatures at a very high level, but if you like to learn more about it, the Wikipedia page is a great place to start.