DIGITAL SIGNATURE CERTIFICATES

Validate digital signatures with unique signing certificates

Gain peace of mind knowing your sensitive documents are secure. Digital signature certificates confirm every signature is authentic to protect your business and customers from fraud and unauthorized access.

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Over 68,000 companies rely on PandaDoc electronic signatures

What is a digital signature certificate?

A digital signature certificate is a secure file that authenticates a signer’s identity.

Digital certificates are generated through a certificate authority (CA). The software platform generates a private and public cryptographic key. The private key is kept secret and the public key is unique to the signer.

Through a process called PKI (public key infrastructure), the public key is sent to the CA with identification information including the signer’s name, location, and email. The CA verifies the signer’s identity and creates a digital certificate.

The public key is sent to the CA and includes identifying information like the signer’s name, location, and email address. The CA verifies the user’s identity and creates the digital certificate.

The benefits of digital signature certificates

Boost security and build customer loyalty

Digital certificates provide an additional layer of security, to verify that every signer is who they say they are. Each signature is uniquely linked to the signer and encrypted to prevent tampering and protect sensitive documents.

Guarantee document authenticity

Our eSignature certificates provide signer verification with details such as IP addresses, location, recipient’s name, and signature/initials, ensuring trust and compliance with every document.

Align with compliance requirements

Digital signature certificates give you access to a verifiable audit trail and comply with eIDAS, ESIGN, and UETA laws. PandaDoc offers qualified electronic signatures (QES) to ensure documents are secure, legally binding, and fully compliant with eIDAS regulations–ideal for European companies and global enterprises operating in the EU.

Certify your digital documents

Know your signers

Gain full visibility into your document process with electronic signature certificates. Track every step with detailed information, including the document reference number, signers’ names, verified email addresses, IP address, and locations.

Timestamps show when the document was sent, viewed, and completed–providing accountability and transparency.

Provide validation for completed documents

Download your signature certificate for a secure digital record that verifies the signer’s identity and confirms document authenticity.

Consolidate audit trail information

Easily track your documents every step of the way, from sending to signing. With detailed timestamps and signer identity information, you always have full visibility into the status of your most important documents.

New: advanced identity verification

PandaDoc also offers identity verification, enhance document security using a passcode, SMS verification, ID check, or knowledge-based authentication (KBA).

Certificates help you track who opened and signed a document. They include signers’ names, IP addresses, and timestamps showing when a document was sent, viewed, and completed. PandaDoc partners with a trusted third-party certificate authority to validate documents, ensuring security and compliance. Create legally binding contracts with confidence, protecting your business and building trust with customers.

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Proof when it matters most

High-value contracts

Digital signature certificates provide enhanced security by ensuring authenticity and preventing tampering or fraud, making them ideal for high-value agreements.

With PandaDoc, you can collect secure, legally binding signatures from anywhere. With built-in audit trails and compliance with legal and industry standards, digital signatures offer a trustworthy, efficient solution for managing sensitive contracts.

Legal conflicts and disputes

Digital signature certificates protect you and your organization from legal disputes by providing proof of a signer’s identity and document authenticity. PandaDoc complies with regulatory standards, including eIDAS, ESIGN, and UETA, to adhere to relevant legal requirements.

HR processes

From offer letters to payroll and tax forms, HR teams handle a wide range of sensitive documents. Digital certificates give HR pros confidence that these documents are secure, tamper-proof, and legally compliant, protecting your company and employees.

International transactions

International documents and transactions must comply with local regulations, including eIDAS in the EU. With PandaDoc, you can validate documents and the signer’s identity to prevent tampering or fraud.

Who uses digital signature certificates?

Learn more about PandaDoc signature certificates

Signature certificate of completed documents

What is a certified digital signature?

Review audit trails for sent documents

Get certifications for your signed documents

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Frequently asked questions

How are digital signature certificates generated?

Digital signature certificates are generated through a certificate authority (CA). The user or software platform generates a pair of cryptographic keys: a private key that’s kept secret and a public key that’s unique to the signer.

The public key is sent to the CA and includes identifying information like the signer’s name, location, and email address. The CA verifies the user’s identity and creates the digital certificate.

This process is supported by a framework called the public key infrastructure (PKI), which ensures the security and trustworthiness of the digital certificates.

Obtaining encrypted keys can be somewhat technical, and in some cases, can be costly. That’s why PandaDoc is a great option to simplify the digital signing process and generate digital signature certificates for tamper-free agreements and legally-binding documents.

How does PandaDoc e-signing work?

PandaDoc eSigning is fast, simple, and secure. First, a user uploads a document for signing or creates one directly in the platform, either from scratch or using a pre-made template.

If there isn’t already a signature field, you can easily add one using the drag-and-drop editor.

If there are multiple signers (internal or external), or team members need to review the document, you can create a list of the people who need access. PandaDoc allows you to designate recipient order and user roles to determine when users receive your document. You can also set up email notifications to alert recipients when it’s time to review or sign.

When your document is ready to ship, there are two ways to send it:

Send via email, and the recipient will receive an email from PandaDoc to access the document.
Share the document link.

The recipient does not need a PandaDoc account to access and sign the document.

With our eSignature software, you can collect signatures from anywhere on any device. Each completed document comes with a certificate of authenticity and is backed by our legally-binding, ESIGN, UETA, HIPPA, and SOC 2 Type II compliant electronic signature software.

Get real-time updates after your document is sent to track recipient behavior to see when a document is viewed or signed.

What technology does PandaDoc use to collect e-signatures?

PandaDoc uses PKI (public key infrastructure) to collect eSignatures, verify the signer’s identity and create an audit trail.

Every signed document comes with a certificate of authenticity which includes a public and private key. The public key contains identification information about the signer, including their name, email address, and location.

PandaDoc uses Entrust, a certified digital security provider for enhanced document security. Secure, identity-verified digital signatures are generated using Entrust’s certificates to confirm document authenticity.

What types of electronic signatures does PandaDoc offer?

PandaDoc offers basic, advanced, and qualified eSignatures.

Basic electronic signatures

Basic eSignatures can be a digital scan of a signature, a typed name, a drawn signature using a finger or stylus, or clicking a button or checkbox to confirm consent.

Basic eSignatures are legally binding, but some entities may require a higher level of authenticity.

Advanced electronic signatures

Advanced electronic signatures (AES) are more secure than basic signatures because they have an electronic seal and undergo additional verification through an electronic registered delivery service (ERDS). Under eIDAS, AES must meet the following requirements:

Must be uniquely linked to the signer
Must correctly identify the signer
Must be created with eSignature creation data such as private encryption keys
Must be linked to data in a document in a way that any changes to the document would invalidate the signature

AES uses PKI to meet these requirements.

Qualified electronic signatures

Qualified electronic signatures (QES) meet higher security standards and are validated using encrypted keys and two-factor authentication. A third party must verify the signer’s identity and a qualified electronic signature can be issued.

A QES must meet eIDAS requirements and is considered legally equivalent to a handwritten signature in the EU. This makes QES the most reliable option for signing international documents.

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