Why are Digital Signatures Important?

Times Stamps and Digital Signatures

Many businesses choose to take the electronic document route as often as possible. The choice makes sense, as electronic documents reduce printing costs by eliminating the need for paper, power and toner/ink. Plus they make storage of documents much more manageable since they reside on a hard drive rather than in a file cabinet or box somewhere.

But electronic documents also come with certain risks. One of the most common is the risk that the document will be altered after it has been created and sent. This can happen if someone gains unauthorized access to the document or if the document is simply edited without the author’s knowledge.

What should you do to protect your business?

To combat this, businesses often turn to timestamps and digital signatures. Timestamps serve as a record of when a document was created or last modified, while electronic signatures provide a way to verify the identity of the document’s author.

When used together, timestamps and electronic signatures can help businesses ensure the authenticity and integrity of their electronic documents.

With the ability to tag electronic documents created with tools such as PDF software, finding the right document is also easier; and, it almost goes without saying that when you save time, you save money as well.

PDF software from Foxit can help you take advantage of the benefits of electronic documents while also ensuring their authenticity and integrity. With Foxit PDF Editor, you can add timestamps and e signatures to PDFs, as well as a variety of other features that make working with PDFs easier and more efficient. Plus, the software integrates with many leading document management systems, making it easy to store, share and track PDFs throughout your organization.

What is a Digital Signature and why is it important?

Official documents are hardly worth anything unless officially signed. A digital signature is much harder to fake than traditional handwritten signatures. A digital signature is a mathematical formula that is used to verify the identity of the document’s author. The formula is based on the contents of the document, so if one character in the document is changed, the digital signature will no longer be valid. This helps to ensure that the document has not been tampered with. Furthermore, it helps to verify that it comes from a trusted source.

Electronic signatures are also becoming increasingly common as businesses move towards electronic transactions. In many cases, a digital signature is just as good as a physical signature. And electronic signatures can now be used to legally binding effect in most US states.

Foxit PDF Editor provides a variety of features that makes working with PDFs easier and more efficient. With the ability to add timestamps and digital signatures, businesses can ensure the authenticity and integrity of their electronic documents. (We will discuss time stamps further below).

When used together, timestamps and digital signatures can help businesses ensure the authenticity and integrity of their electronic documents.

Electronic Signatures vs Handwritten Signatures

Compared to a handwritten signature, a digital signature is much more difficult to forge. All is needed to make an esignature difficult to forge are the keys used to create it are kept secure.

When applied to a document created with your PDF software, the digital signature will include a graphical representation of your signature. The esignature can also look like handwriting or be in any font of your choosing. It can then be saved under a common name of your choosing in the location of your choosing in the software.

Your signed document can also have a time stamp displaying the date and time you signed the file. This then creates an official record of this event.

3 Advantages of Digital Signatures

• e signature are more secure than handwritten signatures and are much more difficult to forge.
• Electronic signatures can be used to create an official record of when a document was signed. This can be helpful in cases where the authenticity of a document is called into question.
• Digital signatures are becoming increasingly common as businesses move towards electronic transactions. In many cases, a digital signature is just as good as a physical signature and can be used to legally binding effect.

An important point here:

Remember that not all PDF software solutions provide the full variety of features for creating esignature. Complete products, such as Foxit PDF Editor, not only enable digital signature creation but also provide other PDF signing options.

Foxit PDF Editor includes a seamless integration with Foxit eSign which is rated as ‘best e signatures software’ by our clients.

Pairing these features with the ability to create electronic documents is vital. And it requires no printing thus eliminating mounts of paperwork! It also provides businesses with a cost effective and comprehensive solution for their electronic document needs.

Apart from the features that have been mentioned, there are other advantages that electronic document solutions can offer businesses. Let’s explore these further:

Other Advantages of e signatures can include:

• The ability to convert paper documents into PDFs.  This can be done using a scanner or by taking photos of the document with a mobile phone
• The ability to password protect PDFs. This ensures that only authorized individuals will be able to view or make changes to the document
• The ability to compress PDFs. This reduces the file size which is important when sending large documents electronically
• The ability to merge multiple PDFs into one document. This can be useful when creating a single document from multiple sources

Overall, electronic document solutions offer businesses a number of advantages that can help to improve efficiency and reduce costs. When choosing a solution, it is important to consider 2 things:

1. Needs of your business and
2. Features that are most important to you.

Foxit PDF Editor provides a complete solution for businesses that need to work with PDFs, with a range of features that can save time and money.

While there are vendors that provide specific electronic document solutions, many organizations find that Foxit PDF software handles all their needs perfectly.

How to add a signature or time stamp to a file

One problem that some organizations have when it comes to electronic documents is adding a signature or time stamp to the file.

The old way of signing a document was to print it, sign it and then scan it back into the Computer for storage. This method made sharing and storage of the document easier. But it generated quite a bit of waste. PDF Editor software, however, provides a perfect solution to this problem through its integrated digital signature feature – Foxit eSign.

Here is how to a digital signature to any PDF document with just a few clicks.

1. Simply open the document in Foxit eSign or Foxit PDF Editor.
2. Click on the “eSign” button and follow the prompts.
3. You can even add a timestmap to your signature, so recipients will know exactly when the document was signed.

Not only does this make the process of signing documents easier and more efficient, but it also helps to ensure the authenticity of the document. With a digital signature, recipients can be confident that the document has not been tampered with. And that it comes from a trusted source.

Getting Started with Foxit eSign

If you want to get started using e signatures for your PDF software, Follow these simple steps:

• Create an account with Foxit. You can sign up for a free trial of the software and test out all of the features before deciding if you want to purchase a subscription.
• Once you have an account, you can log in and start using the software to create and manage your PDF documents.
• When you’re ready to add a signature, simply open the document in Foxit PDF Editor.
• Click on the “Sign” button in the toolbar.

You’ll then be able to select whether you want to add a handwritten signature, use your mouse to draw a signature, or type in your name. You can also add a date and time stamp to the document if you want.

Once you’re happy with your signature, simply click “Apply” and then “Save” to save the document with your signature.

And that’s all there is to it! Adding a digital signature to your PDF documents is a quick and easy way to make sure they’re official. And with Foxit PDF Editor, you can do it all from within the software.

So why not try it out today?

You can sign up for a free trial of Foxit PDF Editor and get to adding signatures to your documents right away.