How to prove an electronic signature

What you need to be able to show

• Intention. The person meant to sign. A signer who opened the document, read it and chose to sign it shows this.
• Attribution. It was that person. An invitation sent to an email address they control is the usual starting point.
• Integrity. The document has not been altered since it was signed.

The activity trail

SignEdge records each step with a time: created, sent, opened, signed and completed, with the signer’s name. You can see it on the document page, and it is added as the final page of the signed PDF so the evidence travels with the file.

The document fingerprint

When a document is complete we calculate a SHA-256 fingerprint of the final PDF and keep it. Change even a single character and the fingerprint changes completely. Anyone holding a copy can check it on the Check a signed document page. The check happens on your own device and the file is never uploaded.

What we deliberately don’t record

SignEdge does not record IP addresses or locations in its activity trail. That keeps less personal data about your signers, but it also means the trail shows what happened and when, not who was physically behind the screen.

When you need more than that

A simple electronic signature with an email invitation is enough evidence for most day-to-day documents. For high-value or sensitive ones, confirm the signer’s identity separately, for example by checking their ID, have someone witness the signing, sign in person, or take advice about a stronger kind of signature. The guide to whether electronic signatures are legal in the UK explains the levels.

Keep your records

Download and keep the signed PDF. The activity trail is inside it, so one file holds the document and its evidence.