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Published August 08th, 2016 by

Secure Your Business Documents With an eSignature Software

Much like any revolutions that the world experienced, the explosion of the digital revolution has changed the way people were going about with their everyday lives. An expansive highway network called the internet have made it easier to communicate and to connect with anybody. There is greater access to information and to people anywhere they may be in the world.

Secure Your Business Documents With an eSignature Software

However, these aspects of open gateways, increased visibility, and wider accessibility make our lives, our ways and our assets, more exposed as well.

The e-Commerce Industry

Businesses have utilized the technology too, now that consumers are moving towards digital. Business processes and documents were also integrated into the internet, to increase the efficiency of executing tasks, and to better reach out to their clients. Almost all documents were also migrated to electronic, and systems have become automated.

One of the most prominent aspects of digital technology is the advent of e-commerce. It reached a huge increase in growth percentage between the years 1999 to 2009, which is about 400%. Fast forward today, the increasing number of mobile and internet users made the e-commerce industry more robust, especially on the aspect of online retailing. Forrester research revealed that their projection for 2017 is that online retail sales will be expected to reach $370 billion, because of the saturation of smart phone and tablet users, as well as with added investments of traditional businesses in online retail.

A basic e-commerce process involves selling of physical goods, but using the internet to advertise and communicate with prospect clients. Sales and payments are usually done in person, through face to face meet ups.

But as the e-commerce progressed, the giant online selling websites like the Amazon and eBay have opened doors for a more dynamic online retail industry. Since then, payment and shipping processes were also staged online via credit cards, the PayPal and shipping merchants like UPS. There is a streamlined customer journey using the internet, and have attracted more customers in the process because of its convenience.

Paper versus Paperless Transactions in Business

One notable aspect that has changed in the way people are doing business is the prominent use of paperless transactions, which are slowly overtaking a more traditional way of using paper.

The paper has dominated most traditional offices, wherein a way to formalize letters, reports and transactions is to put them in writing. This resulted in piles of paperworks, which are spread across storage drawers, correspondence, and to the trash. According to statistics, an average office worker use about 10,000 paper sheets annually. Out of which, about 45% have actually thrown in the trash everyday.

For quite some time, businesses doesn’t actually mind the wastage, since for them, its simplicity, convenience, and popularity outweigh its consequences. But nowadays, people are starting to have strong environmental concerns,backed with the flourishing of the electronic documentation and systems,they have seen a big potential for paperless businesses to finally take place.

In paperless transactions, the processes are almost basically the same, except that most have migrated to the internet in order to enforce a more streamlined customer journey. The marketing has also utilized online marketing campaigns, which also make more informed product or service details through websites. The social media networking platform worked on an omni channel brand visibility to many types of consumers. It also helps businesses gather more customer data, which are valuable in making targeted and engaging approaches to leads, prospects, and customer service. Sales services, including payments, are also processed electronically through the use of debit and credit cards, which are also vital in e-commerce. All of these processes and methods were executed electronically, and coursed through the internet.

In paper transactions, hard copies are important in agreements, contracts and as pieces of proofs that a transaction has taken place, or that a payment has been given and acknowledged in exchange for the goods purchased. In paperless, or electronic transactions, it is also equally important to have evidences for payments, warranties and contracts. This is quite challenging since customers are not dealt face to face but rather online. This became a source of hesitation for some to make more online transactions, because of issues of security, privacy and transparency.

Importance of eSignatures

The electronic document route has been chosen by most businesses nowadays because of its convenience in its creation and transmission. It is also a more cost efficient option, since the use of paper, ink and printing/scanning equipment is unnecessary. It is also time efficient, where there is a huge savings out of not needing to physically sort and store the documents.

However, since businesses are dealing with public and easily accessible networks as storage and transmission gateway for electronic documents, this poses a higher risk of unauthorized access, fraud, forgery and identity manipulation. The exposure of sensitive elements for authentication such as signatures to more people, can make it easily copied or forged, which can be used to conduct unlawful authorizations. An eSignature can be more likely to be copied than handwritten signatures, considering the technology for editing digital images and documents are becoming more sophisticated. There is a need for some sort of a “seal” or a “stamp” that inhibits unscrupulous acts over digital signatures to materialize.

The importance of eSignatures is that it drives security, legal protection, and data management efficiency in electronic documents that require it. It secures digital transactions at the time of its commencement until it reaches its endpoint; whether in its recipient’s hand, or the facilitation of payment order. eSignatures can also verify the identity of the sender with its accompanying details stored in itself, which can be viewed through the digital certification issued with it. eSignatures can also preserve the integrity of the stored or backed up electronic documents by logging the details of the changes and access history to it. It makes a strong basis as to whether the original contents written have been tampered or wrongly changed or modified.

Its integration with mobile devices has added another dimension in executing eSignatures in more critical access platforms. Mobile device developers such as Samsung and Apple have even extended other forms of eSignature authentication such as biometrics with pressure and stroke recognition capability. This allows the same level of security for electronic document access that has already been implemented in desktop computers.

How eSignatures are Created

An eSignature software, is a web based tool that can secure the electronic documents by “stamping” it with a string sequence of mathematically based coding likened to a fingerprint, which “seals” the electronic document by making it resistant to copying and tampering. A digital signature software, or an eSignature software maker, can do this by using public and private key cryptography that enables a rigid and strict encryption and decryption process, which discourages interception and unauthorized access to electronic documents prior and during transmission.

A digital signature tool can also embed a product from a third party security verification body called digital certificate. A digital certificate serves as a proof of identification of the source of the electronic document, including all pertinent identity details, certification validity and scope, and the public key that will be used in decrypting the electronic document upon receiving. A separate, Certificate Authority (CA) is the one that creates and grants this.

Legal Issues and Guarantees

It is a good thing that governments recognize a strong need for regulation and protection of e-commerce transactions and its participants, including both the online business, and their clients. A secured online business transaction should always be backed up with legal and lawful aspects, to ensure the protection of the interests of both the customer and the business. This is also to encourage more participation and engagement of consumers in the online retail industry.

An eSignature tool must ensure that electronic documents such as contract agreements, receipts and reports have sufficient protection against fraud and forgery while living in the digital world. It should also adhere to policies, standards and laws that govern responsible and honest businesses in the online platform.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in the US is an independent agency, that implements rules and regulations concerning consumer protection against unlawful business practices, strong adherence to fair business competition, and expert support regarding the economic impact of such legislations in the economy as a whole.

Businesses that operate within the scope of e-commerce should also familiarize itself other existing laws that must be followed in order to implement truthful transactions and document exchange all the time. There are laws concerning online advertising measures against misleading campaigns, and the invasion of consumer privacy.

There is also a Digital Millenium Copywright Act (DMCA), which addresses intellectual properties and copyright issues, wherein some processes of e-commerce can be subjected to. Digital works, including electronic documents, that are on the internet are also protected with this too. It is necessary that businesses and consumers will have substantial knowledge and awareness over these existing laws to support a healthy and honest online business relationships.

A Digital Transaction Management (DTM) is a type of cloud based software and its associated services, that is created to manage digital transactions, including electronic documents and processes, between its participants. DTM ensures of a secure delivery of digital transactions, which includes protection, compliance, certification and storage of the electronic documents.

An independent and non-profit governing association called xDTM is formed, in order to create and manage secure digital transactions across the globe. xDTM outlined a list of key requirements in order to implement a secure and compliant digital transaction management involving electronic documents and electronic signatures.

  1. Security through the highest standards for encryption, secured access with privileges, and proactive protection rules.
  2. Privacy of all transpiring transactions, with strict guidelines for information discretion and revelation.
  3. Compliance to implemented industry policies and standards, that is verified by a third party auditing firm.
  4. Enforceability, which implies transparency in the audit trail, that is also reliable, and non reputable.
  5. Digital transaction systems should always be accessible, with almost no downtime specially with critical businesses.
  6. Digital transactions should be supported with collaborative working environments such as open APIs and gateways, that promote openness and teamwork.
  7. Scalability which can have a dynamic support for multiple or growing number of users without compromising performance.
  8. Should be universal, wherein transactions can be executed across omni channel platforms, computing systems, multiple devices, digital language, and variable industry settings.

International standards such as The Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (E-Sign Act) and the Uniform Electronic Transaction Act (UETA) are just some of the existing laws that gives a legal framework for a secured, streamlined and mutually beneficial electronic transactions, document exchange and e-commerce.

The best eSignature software can be considered as an authority in enabling a sound mind over electronic document exchange and management in the World Wide Web. Reading on reviews of eSignature software and its provider can broaden your knowledge about more of its practical applications that can benefit your business.

John Tovar

John specializes in the creation and planning of business-centric mobile applications and mobile website design and development.

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