DIGITAL SIGNATURES The entire organisation benefits

Transcription

1 DIGITAL SIGNATURES The entire organisation benefits

2 INTRODUCTION Online transactions and digital interaction In a rapidly-changing market with plenty of competition, your clients increasingly want to limit their paperwork. After all, paperbased transactions are costly and inefficient. Consumers also insist that they can be in digital contact with your clients anywhere, anytime and using any device. That s why it is important that all the processes in the organisation are digitised as much as possible. Electronic signatures) are an extremely useful tool for saving money and growing profits. That applies to every organisation, however big or small it may be. In this e-book you will read what electronic signatures are, what benefits they offer and what they will do for your organisation in combination with the right software. USING DIGITAL SIGNATURES OFFERS YOUR CLIENTS THE FOLLOWING BENEFITS: More satisfied clients Doing business faster Signing more contracts Lower costs, more efficiency No compliance and security risks

3 THE USEFULNESS OF DIGITAL CONTRACTS In the digital world companies must be always on and always connected. In the workplace or while travelling. So when arranging contracts it s extremely useful if they can be signed digitally; ideally without business partners having to meet each other physically, thus allowing business to be done around the world. And ideally, using any device. Processing and signing paper contracts has a number of disadvantages: DIGITAL LEADERS MAKE MORE PROFIT COUNTLESS STUDIES HAVE DEMONSTRATED THE BENEFITS OF AUTOMATING PROCESSES WITH ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES. A SURVEY BY CAPGEMINI CONSULTING REVEALED THAT DIGITAL LEADERS ARE ON AVERAGE 26 PER CENT MORE PROFITABLE THAN OTHER COMPANIES. > Concluding contracts takes a lot of time. > Once a contract has been sent by post, or fax, it s easy to lose track of it. > To sign it the other party has to be physically present, or the contract must be sent, ed or faxed. It is particularly the signing of documents which causes delays. If you could have contracts and other documents signed electronically and could improve the workflow of your documents, this is to the benefit of the organisation.

4 What is a digital signature? Signing a sales contract, approving a budget, agreeing a confidentiality agreement... There are any number of processes which run far more efficiently when it s possible to affix a digital signature. A digital or electronic signature is an electronic variant of the centuries-old handwritten signature. A digital signature consists of electronic details which are attached to a digital document. What s the purpose of a digital signature? A digital signature is intended to confirm the veracity of digital information. This occurs with a technology which can be compared to signing documents with a handwritten signature. The digital signature has to achieve two things: CONFIRM THAT THE INFORMATION HAS NOT BEEN CHANGED BY THIRD PARTIES. CONFIRM THE IDENTITY OF THE PERSON WHO HAS AFFIXED THE DIGITAL SIGNATURE. Is a digital signature legally valid? In the Netherlands a digital signature is legally valid in the same way as a handwritten signature. A precondition for that validity is however that the signature must be linked to the signatory in a unique way. The signature must also be able to identify the signatory. The signature must also have been created with tools which are under the exclusive control of the signatory (his or her own computer, tablet, telephone, smartcard). Finally, any subsequent change must be able to be traced.

5 HISTORY THE TECHNOLOGY FOR DIGITAL SIGNATURES (PKI) WAS DEVELOPED BACK IN THE 1970S. IT TOOK MORE THAN ANOTHER DECADE BEFORE THE PKI TECHNOLOGY WAS ACTUALLY USED FOR THE FIRST TIME TO REPLACE WRITTEN SIGNATURES. How do you affix a digital signature? The simple variant of an electronic signature is a scanned signature on paper, which can for instance be pasted below an message as an image. The major disadvantage of this method is that the signature can easily be forged. If the trustworthiness can sufficiently be established (e.g. because it s on within a company), then this signature is legally valid. Advanced digital signatures use mathematical techniques to link a unique code to a message. This code is derived from the message itself, and from the sender s identity. This ensures that the code cannot be used on a forged message, so that this method is both trustworthy and legally valid. The heaviest variant of a digital signature is the qualified variant. Here an advanced electronic signature is checked using a certificate which has been issued by a recognised certificate issuer. The OPTA is responsible for recognising and registering these service providers. FORGED SIGNATURES PERHAPS MORE THAN HALF OF THE HANDWRITTEN SIGNATURES OF CELEBRITIES IN CIRCULATION ARE FORGERIES. OF EVERYTHING SAID TO HAVE BEEN SIGNED BY THE BEATLES, IT S ESTIMATED THAT NO MORE THAN SIX PER CENT IS GENUINE.

6 DIGITAL SIGNATURES: the entire organisation benefits Signing and processing contracts digitally is useful for all the departments in every organisation. Sales/Customer Service Financial department In combination with a CRM package for instance, digital signatures are ideal for processing orders, stock management and contracts with partners. Processing contracts and invoices goes a lot faster when documents can be signed digitally. This saves time and ensures a better throughput. It s also useful for employees, for instance if they are able to sign expense reports electronically Sales staff or support employees who travel a lot can have contracts signed and processed immediately with a tablet. IT Human Resources All personnel issues can be handled with a minimum of paper: recruitment and selection, administration and signing contracts or confidentiality agreements (Non-Disclosure Agreements) by candidates. This limits the number of errors, and ensures that the department complies with current regulations. It also offers employees a better experience. Many functions can be automated more easily through the ability to sign digitally. For example, employees and management can sign electronically for all sorts of internal requests. Marketing The use of digital signatures makes it easier to conclude contracts for instance, or to obtain approval for marketing campaigns and to register clients for events.

7 DOCUSIGN IN A NUTSHELL SIGNING A DOCUMENT OCCURS IN THREE SIMPLE STEPS: Step 1 Upload a Word, PDF or other type of document. Step 2 Type the names and addresses of those who have to sign. Step 3 Drag and drop labels to indicate where the signature, initials or date must be affixed. The solution for digital signatures from DocuSign DocuSign is the global market leader in electronic signatures. DocuSign has more than 200 million users in 188 countries, and is available in 43 languages. The solution supports all three types of electronic signatures (standard, advanced and qualified). DocuSign is suitable for companies of every scope and type. Everyone can get started with it immediately using the cloud-based software. Click Send and DocuSign will a link to each recipient which they can use to open the document. Once the document has been signed, it is saved securely.