Signatures, seals, certificates and timestamps for verifiable electronic documents.
A signed document must stay verifiable
An electronic signature solves two things at once: who signed, and the fact that the document has not changed since signing. The problem comes later, when the signer’s certificate expires or is revoked, and verification can no longer say whether the signature was valid when it was applied.
That is why what matters is not only signing but the infrastructure around it: certificates, revocation lists, timestamps. A document signed today must be verifiable in ten years, when the context has changed completely.
What the component covers
The electronic signature belongs to a person and expresses their will. The electronic seal belongs to an organisation and attests the origin and integrity of the document — useful for documents issued in bulk, where no particular person signs.
The timestamp attests that the document existed in a given form at a given moment. It is the piece that makes verification possible after the certificate expires: the question is not whether the certificate is valid now, but whether it was valid then.
In the European Union, the framework is Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 — eIDAS — which defines the levels of signature and their legal effects. Choosing the right level for each document type is a decision of the organisation, not a technical one.
- electronic signature for people;
- electronic seal for documents issued by the organisation;
- timestamp, for verification after the certificate expires;
- automatic validity check when the document is submitted.
What the organisation gains
Documents circulate and are archived electronically, without being printed for signature and scanned back. The cycle gets shorter, and the file stays consistent: everything is electronic, including the proof.
At an inspection or in court, the document can be verified without depending on anyone’s memory of how it was signed.
Questions and answers
What type of signature do our documents need?
It depends on the document type and on the legal requirements of the field. It is a legal decision of the organisation; we provide the mechanisms for the chosen level.
Can documents signed outside the platform be verified?
Verification is based on the certificate and the timestamp attached to the document, wherever it was signed, as long as the format is a standard one.
What happens when the signer’s certificate expires?
The timestamp allows checking validity at the moment of signing, not at the moment of verification.
Do you integrate with qualified certificate providers?
Integration with trust service providers is set at implementation, depending on the provider you use.