The Age Of The Digital Signature

In today’s high-tech world it is no longer necessary to put pen to paper in order to enter into a contractual relationship. There are electronic means to complete an array of agreements, including making a purchase or taking out a loan. In fact you may have electronically signed a contract today without even realizing.

In response to ever-increasing electronic activity, electronic signature laws were enacted at both the state and federal levels. In 2000, not only did Ohio’s Uniform Electronic Transactions Act go into effect, but Congress enacted the Electronic Signatures In Global and National Commerce Act (ESIGN). ESIGN gives electronic contracts and signatures the same legal effect, and enforceability as their paper equivalent in all interstate and foreign commerce.

Digital signature is defined by ESIGN as, “an electronic sound, symbol, or process, attached to or logically associated with a contract or other record and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record." This definition means that the concept of a signature as only a physical mark on paper is no longer absolute.

There is now the concept of “electronic indication of assent.” Contracts can now be entered into by checking a box on a website, entering a personal identification number, faxing a signature, or selecting the number one on the phone.

However, it is not as easy to accidentally enter into an electronic contract as it seems. In order to protect consumers, ESIGN mandates that information legally required to be in writing be available electronically to a consumer only if the consumer affirmatively consents to receive the information electronically, the business clearly and conspicuously discloses specified information to the consumer before obtaining consent, and the consumer's consent is conveyed in a manner that "reasonably demonstrates" that the consumer can access information in the same electronic form that will be used to provide the information. In doing so ESIGN not only protects against fraud, but it also promotes new methods of electronic transactions and allows the private sector to achieve greater efficiency.

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