Invoices, contracts, payrolls or receipt of documents are just a few examples of the documents in which digital signatures can act as a secure, legal and strong authentication method. What are the most commonly signed documents online today? Below, we review the evolution of digital signatures and tell you which documents are the most common in the field of digital signatures.
The remote signature has reached our days as one of the most practical and essential resources to speed up all kinds of business procedures.
If we were to refer to each and every one of the practical applications of the online signature, we would end up with an endless list before our eyes, so we wanted to group the most common uses according to the nature of the procedures they solve. But first we would like to give you an overview of their evolution in Europe and Spain.
Historical review of the digital signature
In order to understand with total clarity how we have arrived at the situation in which the digital signature is today, it will be convenient to look back and review both its origins and its evolution in the most important aspects.
The concept was born in 1976 from the hand of Diffie and Hellman, to later develop their algorithms, such as the RSA in 1978 and the legislations that make reference to it.
At the European level, the first related law was the 1999/93 EC Directive on electronic signatures, a legal development that culminated in the implementation of the European eIDAS (electronic Identification Regulation) in 2014.
In Spain, it all started in 1995 with the appearance of the first Certification Authority. In legal matters, we highlight the emergence of the first Law 59/2003 on electronic signatures and the implementation of the aforementioned eIDAS Regulation in 2016.
What types of documents are electronic signatures used for?
To sign online documents from the human resources department
Undoubtedly, the control of everything related to the work teams of a company is one of the aspects of management that involves more documentation. We are talking about contracts, payroll, sanctions, entry and exit controls, terminations, discharges, confidentiality agreements and an endless amount of paperwork.
These signature solutions add great value to these administrative processes, streamlining procedures, contributing to mobility and the possibility of delegation.
But these are not the only advantages. In addition, thanks to the digitization of signature processes, managers will be able to access up-to-date document information about the workforce from anywhere in a paperless environment, which will save on material, storage and labor costs and speed up the pace of work.
Nor should we underestimate that a digitized human resources management gives a modern and efficient image of the company, which creates confidence in employees and provides a current and environmentally committed vision to the outside world.
To sign commercial documents online
Reaching agreements for the purchase and sale of products, raw materials or the contracting of services in the traditional way can become interminable as it usually requires the authorization and signature in person of one or more people who, in general, are very busy and it is difficult to make them coincide at the same time in the same geographical location.
The longer the delay in signing these agreements, the more profit we may be losing, plus the possibility that the situation may cool down or that our partner may find another competitor with whom to complete the process.
That is why the digital signature can provide resources for its optimization, not requiring the simultaneous presence of all signatories. In fact, it can even be executed during the celebration of events or fairs, making sure to tie the first commercial opportunities that arise.
To sign online documents of the financial team
The financial aspects of a company are key for obvious reasons. Even so, we must be clear that the main mission of a company should not be to earn as much money as possible, but to focus on providing services that help its customers solve their problems. Although it is true that this requires economic resources.
The documentary burden of the departments related to this sector is far from light. We are talking about invoices, budgets, payment orders, expense control, forecasts, bank documents of various kinds, etc.
We are referring to highly sensitive procedures, which usually involve large sums of money and therefore require important security measures and the participation of several managers at different levels of the company.
It is also important to note the fact that fintech companies have burst onto the scene as a result of these needs, providing additional accessibility and security in economic transactions thanks to, among other measures, digital signatures.
To sign online documents used in logistics
Companies that work with physical goods, the control of raw materials, semi-finished products, final products and manufacturing materials require a large amount of documentation.
The receipt and shipment of goods are frequent actions in which the digital signature of documents can play an important role, in these cases the biometric signature is usually the main protagonist.
Viafirma’s solutions register variables that can be very important for the logistics department, such as geographic coordinates, time stamping or the identification of the person receiving the goods.
To electronically sign healthcare documents
The world of health and related research enjoys the functionalities offered by the online firm.
On the one hand, we can highlight as paradigmatic in this area the treatment of patients’ informed consent to receive some medical services. In these scenarios the physician will be able to sign large quantities of documents at once with the batch signature. From the patient’s perspective, the patient can give consent with his biometric signature.
If we move to the laboratory environment, we are introduced to a work methodology that involves an important number of sensitive data that must be handled with great care. The need for strong security measures requires tedious bureaucratic procedures that can be streamlined with Viafirma’s solutions.
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Solutions for digital signature of documents
Having analyzed the different use cases, it is clear that digital signatures are compatible with any type of document and contract. Therefore, the next step to consider is to identify which signature solution will best suit your business processes.
In the case of Viafirma, we provide companies and citizens with different solutions that, in a simple and efficient way, adapt to each of the circumstances mentioned above.
Creating a document for signature, with added and very advantageous functionalities, such as mandatory reading clauses and intelligent forms, as well as the monitoring and auditing of the signature process, are just some of the advantages provided by Viafirma Documents, all in accordance with the current legality defined in the aforementioned eIDAS Regulation.
In digital signature processes that involve numerous agents, having a digital signature holder such as Viafirma Inbox can be a competitive advantage to be taken into account. Helping to manage the documents pending signature and to define flows, as well as the signature delegation.
Finally, we must not leave behind the centralized management of certificates, so necessary for some signature procedures, with Viafirma Fortress. It is here where the signature in the cloud comes to the forefront, which gives us the possibility of having these certificates available for their use regardless of where we are.
Viafirma’s solutions are omnipresent in all sectors, and even more in companies that have established a high rate of digital transformation, implementing with it a more agile, secure and adaptable service to the needs of each user.