Digital Signature
for US Employees
& Professionals

Notarius digital signatures are used to sign official documents and meet the standards of many countries. However, each jurisdiction may have specific requirements that must be met in order to be recognized. For example, in France, many agencies will only recognize French certificate authorities. In the United States, requirements for authenticating engineering documents will mostly be limited to a technological baseline, but not specific to a provider or a standard. As such, Notarius digital signatures meet or exceed the minimum requirements for all US states (except Hawaii). It is important to verify local digital signature requirements with recipients prior to submitting signed documents that use Notarius digital signatures.

Of course, other considerations need to be evaluated before making a digital shift. Please feel free to reach out to Notarius for a working session on the subject for further discussion.

A signed document can be marked up but cannot be easily altered. If a digitally signed document were to be altered, the digital signature would be removed from the file, thus rendering the document a copy of the original. For example, in paper form, a wet signature original can be photocopied, thus creating a copy of the original and this copy can be easily modified and altered. The same is true for an original electronic PDF with a digital signature. It can be “reprinted” as a PDF and the new document then becomes a copy of the original. This copy can be altered but, for the recipient, it is a copy since the digital signature is no longer part of the PDF.

The complete process takes approximately 45 minutes, but it is usually stretched out over five business days. Once your identity has been verified, your digital signature request will be sent to the Affiliation Verification Agent (AVA) designated by your association or company where you are employed for approval. The approval process takes between 1 and 10 days.

Most companies start with a pilot project to test out the solution with a few people over a two to three-month period. At that point, companies often present a profitability analysis report, obtain a budget and then proceed to plan the company-wide deployment. The full process takes between six months and one year, based on the company. Don’t get discouraged if things seem to be taking a long time; it’s normal and we expect the deployment to occur gradually.

In this case, paper format is required. You must seal the paper document and send it to the client. HOWEVER, most clients only require the paper format for documents that they would like to examine, while accepting original electronic documents and their paper copies. We can also help you answer your clients’ questions about the technology to reassure them.

NO. This goes against our authentication standards and our certificate policies. Your right to use a digital signature may be revoked if you share your digital signature and password with someone else, including your colleagues, spouse and children. A third party may prepare your signature zone, but you are the only person who can use your digital signature.