A digital signature makes it possible to sign documents from anywhere within minutes, without printing and scanning. Here is how the digital signature developed and what advantages it brings to businesses and organizations.
Not a recent invention
Today's digital signature actually began with the electronic signature. Over recent decades, electronic information traffic increased, including sensitive documents, and the issue needed a legal framework. This led to the Electronic Signature Law, which stipulates, among other things, that certain documents must have a secure signature. In other words, in addition to some form of signature, such as a company logo or the signer's name, these documents contain an encrypted file that contributes to their reliability, security and validity and ensures that unauthorized parties have not altered them.
The Income Tax Authority and other government bodies subsequently adopted secure signatures, and clear security standards were established. Today, any reputable digital signature system adds this encrypted file automatically, without human intervention.
The digital signature enters the picture
Technological developments in recent years have significantly changed the exchange of electronic documents. Ordinary documents can now be converted into digital forms that are identical to the originals but can be completed and signed online. A signature can be made using a mouse or a mobile phone's touchscreen. Documents can therefore be completed and signed very easily, without printing, scanning, manual filing or any paper at all. Since no office equipment is needed, forms can be completed and signed anywhere, at any time.
This is excellent news for businesses and organizations, which can have employees, customers, partners, officeholders and others sign digital forms across a wide range of activities. Forms can also be sent to any number of recipients with a click, documents can be scheduled for automatic sending, reminders can be received about sending dates, signature rounds can be managed, and more.
Saving time and expenses
As a result, digital signatures also save a great deal of work and time. They significantly reduce office spending on paper and related supplies, as well as human errors in completing and filing documents. As noted, this is in addition to the substantial environmental benefit of using less paper.
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