What Types Of Electronic Signature Can Be Done With A Mobile Device

Although we all know that this should not be the case, that we are very technologically advanced, that our company has this system and that the other one, which makes our products the envy of the sector. Despite everything, today there are still many that continue to rely on paper as part of their distribution and distribution process. Possibly because we have not measured the additional cost that should be passed on to our product, derived from the problems that may arise in this regard. Problems that can range from the loss of documentation that, remember, will be signed by your client, to modifications made “by hand” on the document and that was never reflected in the system, cancellations, observations of your client towards the address of which they never there was constancy, and how are you endless possibilities.

Fortunately, some solutions allow you to forget about all these problems, enable this part of your business to be in line with the rest of the company, and also contribute to the environment by eliminating that amount of unnecessary paper.

I imagine that you have already received a package at home, as the delivery of a purchase you have made online. Depending on what you are receiving, it is possible that the only thing you have had to do was give your ID, and make a scribble with your finger on the screen (sometimes shattered), of the device that the dealer offers you. True? Well, and that’s it? Is that enough? Yes, this is sufficient as long as the two parties agree to recognize that signature. That is, that signature will be valid until it ceases to be.

There are several ways to collect a person’s signature and associate it with a document. These will have more or less legal force, the greater the security and the rules that apply to it. I detail below what I find most interesting, always aimed at collecting signatures from a mobile app.

Signature On The Screen WITHOUT Certificate

Electronic Signature WITHOUT Certificate: This is the simplest model and therefore with a lighter legal validity. As I said before, as long as both parties agree that this signature is correct, there will be no problems. Now, if the transaction is complicated, both can say that this signature is not worth it, and indeed it is not. Think that the delivery man may have gotten the wrong house, go to that of the neighbor (who coincidentally knows your ID), and sign with an invented doodle, thus keeping your package. There are no guarantees of who signs or how it is signed.

That signature will be embedded as an image in the document, and little else. There is no subsequent control over changes to this.

Signature On The Screen WITH Certificate

Electronic Signature WITH Certificate: This mechanism is the same as the previous one, but at least on this occasion, when the system generates the document with the embedded signature image, it uses a digital certificate that the device must have installed, to add the information of this certificate to the document. With this when viewing the document we will be able to see both the image with the signature of the client, as well as the data of the digital certificate of the mobile device, as well as the data of the moment of the signature. Thus, if the document is subsequently edited, we will be able to know that this signature does not apply to its current information, but rather to a previous copy of which we no longer have information. Therefore, that signature would not apply to the document.

Signature With Biometric Data Collection Devices

Biometric Signature: For the collection of biometric data from the firm, we will need a tool capable of capturing this data. We can use a digital pen for this purpose, with pressure and force sensors on both the pointer and the attachment points, or instead, use a tablet that will also measure pressure, speed, etc. These data can allow you to differentiate your signature from that of any other person.

Here we will have different options for obtaining and inserting the information in the document. From online platforms that receive this information in real-time, together with the document, and return it signed and with all the guarantees of their service, to applications that themselves embed the information in the document. The latter guarantee, through a digital certificate, who certified that signature, as well as who signed it manually.

Also Read: Voice Biometrics – What Is It?

Sending The Document To The Client To Be Signed By Their Certificate

Client’s Signature Through Their Certificate: This option discharges the responsibility of signing the document to the client himself. It is not so versatile since all your clients must have their digital certificate installed and in force. Also, we lose that immediacy that we have with the rest of the options, but we are not going to remove it from this list.

In this case, the dealer simply mails the document to the customer’s account. You will have to download and sign this using a digital certificate installed on your computer. Once signed, it is forwarded to the dealer, ending the transaction.

There are platforms for signing documents, which are based on this mechanism for the collection of signatures that, applying their security policies and directives, guarantee that the document has been signed by whoever claims to have signed it, and at the time they claim to have done so.

As a reinforcement for all these systems, we must be clear that the more information we can collect from the moment of signing, the more backed up the document will be if it were necessary to resort to third parties for its validation. That is, we can collect data such as the geolocation of the moment of signing, device data, or even images of the signatories, why not. All this associated with the signed document, with the use of a digital certificate that guarantees that it has not been edited once signed, will give our document more force before a subsequent revision.

The use of one form or another will depend, of course, on the need for authenticity that your documents will require, and on the destination to which your merchandise is directed. Not all documents can be signed with a scribble without any control, nor do all clients have to have a digital certificate. That is why we know the most interest that the market offers us regarding this topic, and that we can decide what our needs are.