What is a digital signature and is it as valid as a traditional paper signature? Are there different types of digital signatures? Anyone considering a digital signature solution faces many questions.
So how do you ensure that the solution you choose is legally sustainable? Torbjörn Lindkvist, Business and Product Development Manager at Storegate, explains.
“It is not easy to determine whether the solution you are looking at meets the legal requirements for signing. In fact, many signing solutions available on the market do not hold up legally under close scrutiny. Above all, it is important to check what level of signing is actually offered. In order to get a legally compliant signing solution, you need to make sure that you are getting advanced or qualified signing.”
Different levels of signatures
Digital signatures are usually divided into three levels. In short, it is the validity that distinguishes a so-called simple signature from an advanced or qualified signature.
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A simple digital signature, for example, involves signing by clicking on a button in a browser. This type of signature has no background verification system, which means that the signature itself cannot be linked to the signatory. There is also a risk that it could be manipulated afterwards.
Advanced
An advanced signature has a higher level of security, where the signature is linked to the signer and it is possible to identify the signer. Advanced signatures have security requirements that are regulated by the eIDAS Regulation.
Qualified
Qualified signatures are a stricter form of advanced signatures and have the same legal validity as a traditional paper signature. In addition to the security requirements of eIDAS, a qualified signature also requires certificate-based digital IDs issued by a TSP (Trust Service Provider) and multi-factor authentication such as BankID.
To have a legally sustainable solution that can be used for signing contracts containing confidential information and for submitting the annual report digitally, for example, you need a service with advanced signing. Torbjörn Lindkvist explains further:
“What is crucial for whether a signature can really be classified as advanced is that all requirements in eIDAS are met. There is a pitfall here if you fail to check that what is promised is really true. There are services where only a few requirements are met and this means that the signature is not advanced”.
All eIDAS requirements must be met
eIDAS is an EU regulation and applies as law. The requirements of eIDAS Article 26 for advanced digital signatures are as follows:
- It should be uniquely linked to the signatory.
- The signatory should be identifiable through it.
- It shall be created on the basis of electronic signature creation data that the signatory can use with a high degree of confidence and exclusively under his own control.
- It shall be linked to the data it is used to sign in such a way that any subsequent change to the data is detectable.
In this case, all requirements for advanced signing must be met. For qualified signing, in addition to the points above, certificates and time stamps from a TSP (Trust Service Provider) that is on the EUTL list and multi-factor authentication for verification and signing such as BankID are required.
A regular and secure signing solution at Storegate
Storegate’s signing service meets all eIDAS requirements and offers advanced and qualified signatures. We use certificates and time stamps from a TSP (Trust Service Provider) on the EUTL list and multi-factor authentication for verification and signing with BankID. This means that Storegate’s signing solution can be used by organizations in the public sector, when signing agreements containing confidential information and for submitting the annual report digitally. Contracts signed via Storegate are legally valid throughout the EU.
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Curious to know more about our signing solution? We are happy to tell you more about how Storegate gives you a secure solution for storing, collaborating and signing documents. All gathered in a Swedish cloud.
