In today’s digital era, everything is at your disposal at a moment’s notice. It is no surprise that digital signatures are widely popular. However, the social distancing, the no-contact rule, and the lockdown of the pandemic era made e-signature not just a handy tool, but a necessity. With work from home becoming the norm, companies all over the world adopted and accepted digital signatures.
Even with the pandemic under control and offices asking their employees to work from the office, the popularity of the digital signature has not diminished.
According to research conducted by P&S Intelligence, the e-signature market attained $951.3 million in 2019 and is expected to grow to a 24.6% CAGR by 2030.
Rest assured e-signatures are not a passing trend. They are here to stay for good.
If you are looking to familiarize yourself with the concept of digital signatures or are looking to create digital signatures online of your own, then you have arrived at the right place. In this article, we will understand what electronic signatures are, what are their benefits, and how you can create a digital signature online.
What is a digital signature?
A digital signature is an electronic authentication method used to confirm the identity of a signer and validate the integrity of a document. Offering superior security compared to traditional handwritten signatures but having the same level of validity, digital signatures employ cryptographic techniques to generate a distinct digital signature for each document.
A digital signature has a certificate-based digital ID that is provided by an accredited provider and comes with a pin for verifying a signer’s credentials. Digital signatures use encryptions during rest as well as transit and the documents remain in a tamper evident seal, alerting users to any modifications that have been made.
A document that is digitally signed can be revalidated by a Certificate Authority (CA) or a Trusted Service Provider (TSP) for a period of up to 10 years post the signing event.
Why should you opt for a digital signature?
DocuSign by ZNetLive provides a digital signature solution that provides the following features:
- Convenience: Digital signatures provide the signer with the flexibility to sign documents irrespective of their locations as long as there is an internet connection.
- Environment-friendly: Digital signatures encourage sustainability by reducing carbon footprint due to its virtual nature.
- Cost effective: E-signatures are extremely efficient and save a lot of time and resources.
- Robust security: Digital signatures are tamperproof. They alert the signer in case any alteration has been made to the document. Its top-quality encryption is active even in rest mode ensuring that your documents don’t fall into the wrong hands.
- Audit trail: E-signature solutions offer detailed audit trails that record the entire signing process, including the identity of the signatories, timestamps, and location of signing.
How to create a digital signature
There are a couple of methods that can be used to create a digital signature.
1. Draw and scan
In this method, an individual needs to draw the signature on a piece of paper using a pen and then scan or take an image of the signature. You can use the image editor on your phone to sharpen and crop the image to the required size. You may further need a conversion tool to convert the image into PNG in case the image was a JPG file. After the image of the signature is ready, you can drag and drop the image to the file that needs to be signed.
While this method is fast and compatible with Word Documents and Google Docs, a lot of PDFs may not allow you to insert images. This method is also not secure since there is no digital certificate or digital ID associated with the signature and their validity can be contested.
2. Online tool like DocuSign
Another way of creating a digital signature is to use an online tool like DocuSign provided by ZNetLive. It allows you to create your virtual signature easily. You have three options for creating a customized e-signature:
- Select a Signature Style: eSignature automatically generates a stylized version of your signature and initials based on your name. While the default style is displayed, you can explore various options by selecting “Select a Style.” Styles differ in line thickness, width, and handwriting style.
- Draw Your Signature: You can choose to draw your signature either with your finger on a mobile device or with your mouse on a laptop or desktop. Click on the signature field, drag your cursor to create your signature, and repeat the process for your initials. You can further customize the color and thickness of your drawn signature.
- Upload a Photo of Your Signature: If you prefer your electronic signature to resemble your physical one on paper, upload a photo of your signature and initials. Ensure the signature is drawn on a blank, white page, and the image file is in .png, .jpg, .bmp, or .gif format, not exceeding 200kb. After uploading, preview how it will appear as an electronic signature, and click “accept signature” to complete the process.
Utilize your personalized electronic signature everywhere confidently, as it reflects your unique identity and remains secure, safe, and legally admissible.
If you are a receiver, and you get an email containing a hyperlink to the document requiring your digital signature, follow these steps:
- Open the link.
- The document will typically appear in the electronic signature platform – DocuSign.
- Consent to electronic signing, if prompted.
- Upon confirming your agreement, and if the document is facilitated through DocuSign, you’ll find tags with directives to either Start or Sign.
- Click each tag and adhere to the provided instructions to affix your digital signature.
- Confirm your identity as per the provided guidelines and complete the process of adding your digital signature.
The advantage of using online tools to create e-signature is that not only are your signatures safe and secure due to the encryption provided, but you can save your signature allowing you to reuse them as often as you’d like.
Suggested Reading: Top 5 electronic signature apps to sign documents online in 2025
Wrapping up
Creating a digital signature is a simple process, with various methods available to accommodate different needs. Digital signatures add a crucial layer of security and authenticity to electronic documents, making them indispensable for businesses and individuals in the digital era.
In case of any queries, you can contact us at sales@znetlive.com
Image Source: DocuSign
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