How do I verify a signature on airSlate SignNow PDF?

Open the Preferences dialog box. Under Categories, select Signatures. For Verification, click More. To automatically validate all signatures in a PDF when you open the document, select Verify Signatures When The Document Is Opened.

How do you verify an electronic signature?

Open the PDF file in PDF Converter Professional. Left-click on the Digital Signature field. Click "Verify Signature". Click "Properties". Click "Verify Identity".

How do I stop airSlate SignNow from verifying my signature?

Go to Edit - Preferences - Signatures and click on More next to Verification, and then tick off the "Verify signatures when the document is opened' box.

How is a signature verified?

Digital signatures are typically made in a two-step process. ... Thus, when a signature is verified by the public key, it decrypts to a hash matching the message. That hash can only be decrypted using the public key if it were encrypted with the private signing key. Public keys are created by the keypair owner.

How do I validate a digital signature in Word?

Open the Word document, Excel spreadsheet or PowerPoint presentation that has a digital signature. Double click the signature line. ... The Signatures pane appears. ... The Signature Details dialog appears. For more certificate information, click View. The Certificate dialog appears.

What is considered a digital signature?

Electronic signature (eSignature) refers to any electronic process that indicates acceptance of an agreement or record. Most electronic signature solutions in the U.S. fall into this broad category. ... Digital signature uses a certificate-based digital ID to authenticate a signer's identity.

How do you create an electronic signature?

Suggested clip How to Create Electronic and Digital Signature and Sign PDF and ...YouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clip How to Create Electronic and Digital Signature and Sign PDF and ...

How can I write my signature?

Suggested clip How to design your own amazing signature - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clip How to design your own amazing signature - YouTube

What is a digitally signed email?

A digital signature attached to an email message offers another layer of security by providing assurance to the recipient that you\u2014not an imposter\u2014signed the contents of the email message. Your digital signature, which includes your certificate and public key, originates from your digital ID.

How do I create a digital signature?

STEP 1: Log on and select your type of entity. ... STEP 2: Fill the necessary details. ... STEP 3: Proof of identity and address. ... STEP 4: Payment for DSC. ... STEP 5: Post the documents required.

Do you sign your name in an email if you have a signature?

That's true even if you have an email signature. Adding a closing like \u201cRegards\u201d or \u201cSincerely\u201d before your name is a polite way to end a message. CONSIDER YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE RECIPIENT You should stick to professional email closings when corresponding with anyone related to your job search.

How can you tell a person's personality by their signature?

Signature Placement: If your signature is more towards the right of the page (or signing area), you are believed to be a forward looking person. Signatures in the center signifies a need for attention and signatures more to the left hints that you may be withdrawn with a tendency to cling to the past.

Electronic Signature
Features
Other
Check E Signature Efficiently with SignNow

Check E Signature with SignNow's Secure Solution

Eliminate paperwork and optimize digital document management for higher efficiency and countless opportunities. Discover the best manner of doing business with airSlate SignNow.

See how it works!Click here to sign a sample doc

Award-winning eSignature solution

What it Means to check e signature

Checking an e signature refers to the process of verifying that an electronic signature on a document is genuine, intact, and legally binding under applicable U.S. laws. Verification typically includes confirming signer identity, validating signature metadata such as timestamps, and ensuring document integrity since signing. Organizations often combine automated validation, audit trail review, and optional multi-factor authentication to confirm signatures. signNow is commonly used in the United States as a secure, compliant platform for these checks while supporting standard verification workflows and record retention practices.

Why verifying an e-signature matters

Checking an electronic signature reduces legal and operational risk by confirming signer intent and preserving evidentiary records that support enforceability under U.S. law.

Common challenges when you check e signature

Incomplete audit records can make it hard to prove the signing timeline or signer identity in disputes.
Inconsistent authentication options across systems create gaps when verifying a signer’s identity.
Poor document version control increases the risk of signing the wrong or altered content.
Misconfigured retention settings may lead to premature deletion of records needed for legal compliance.

Representative user profiles

In-house Counsel

A legal professional responsible for contract review and dispute readiness who needs reliable audit trails, signer authentication records, and clear evidence of intent to support enforcement and regulatory compliance.

HR Manager

A human resources lead who processes offer letters and employment forms and requires quick verification of signatures, consistent templates, and secure storage to meet personnel record policies and privacy obligations.

Who typically needs to check e signature

Legal teams handling contracts and dispute evidence.
Human resources managing offer letters and onboarding documents.
Finance and procurement approving invoices and vendor agreements.

Organizations of all sizes rely on consistent signature checks to reduce risk and maintain auditable records.

Additional features that improve signature verification workflows

Supplementary capabilities help reduce manual review, maintain consistency, and integrate checks into existing business systems for improved efficiency.

Bulk Send

Send identical documents to many recipients and collect signatures at scale while maintaining separate audit trails for each signature to simplify verification across large distributions.

Field Controls

Use required fields, conditional logic, and validation rules to ensure signers provide necessary data before signing, reducing post-signing corrections and verification effort.

Templates

Create reusable templates with preset signer roles and authentication settings so verification steps are consistently applied across similar documents and use cases.

API Access

Connect signature verification and audit retrieval to internal systems via REST APIs to automate checks and incorporate signed-file evidence into downstream workflows.

Permissions

Role-based access controls restrict who can view signatures, audit data, and retention settings, ensuring only authorized personnel perform verification and access sensitive records.

Notifications

Automated reminders and completion alerts reduce missed signatures and provide timestamps for follow-up, simplifying the tracking of verification status.

be ready to get more

Choose a better solution

Core features to support checking e signatures

Key platform capabilities help teams verify signatures consistently: identity verification, tamper-evident audit trails, configurable authentication, and secure archival retain evidence and support compliance.

Identity Verification

Options to confirm signer identity using email, SMS OTP, knowledge-based questions, or identity document uploads provide layered assurance when checking who signed and mitigate impersonation risk during verification.

Tamper-evident Audit

A full audit trail records each signing step, including timestamps, signer actions, and document hashes, enabling reviewers to trace the signing sequence and validate document integrity after execution.

Authentication Options

Configurable authentication policies allow teams to require multi-factor authentication or higher-assurance identity checks for sensitive documents, aligning verification rigor with transaction risk.

Secure Archival

Encrypted storage with retention controls preserves signed documents and associated logs for the required retention period, ensuring evidence is available for legal or compliance review.

How verification works when you check e signature

Verification combines signer authentication, metadata checks, and document integrity validation to establish a reliable signature record.

Authentication: Confirm signer login or OTP verification.
Metadata capture: Record time, IP, and device details.
Integrity check: Validate file hash or certificate.
Audit storage: Store logs with the signed file.

Collect signatures

24x

faster

Reduce costs by

$30

per document

Save up to

40h

per employee / month

Step-by-step: How to check e signature on a document

A concise four-step sequence to verify electronic signatures and supporting evidence in a standardized review workflow.

01

Retrieve document: Open the final signed PDF or archived record.
02

Review audit trail: Check timestamps, signer IP, and authentication events.
03

Confirm identity: Compare authentication method and signer details.
04

Validate integrity: Confirm document hash or signature certificate matches.

Audit trail review checklist for checking e signature

A six-point checklist to systematically review audit records and confirm a signature’s validity and integrity.

01

Locate audit file:

Open the signed record and attached audit log.

02

Confirm signer identity:

Verify authentication events and signer details.

03

Check timestamps:

Compare signing times and sequence.

04

Validate integrity:

Compare file hashes for discrepancies.

05

Review device metadata:

Inspect IP and device identifiers.

06

Store verification evidence:

Archive logs with retained signed file.

be ready to get more

Why choose airSlate SignNow

Free 7-day trial. Choose the plan you need and try it risk-free.
Honest pricing for full-featured plans. airSlate SignNow offers subscription plans with no overages or hidden fees at renewal.
Enterprise-grade security. airSlate SignNow helps you comply with global security standards.

Start free trial

Typical workflow settings for automated verification

A representative set of workflow settings helps enforce consistent verification and retention when you check e signature in routine processes.

Feature Setting Name and Description	Configuration value for each workflow setting
Default reminder frequency between sends	48 hours
Authentication requirement for high-risk documents	MFA required
Audit retention period for signed files	7 years
Template enforcement for critical agreements	Template lock enabled
Document integrity verification on download	Hash validation

Platform and device considerations for checking e signatures

Desktop browsers: Modern TLS support
Mobile apps: Native OTP support
PDF export: Embedded audit data

Ensure cross-platform consistency so verification steps work the same on desktop, tablet, and mobile, and that exported documents retain audit metadata for offline review.

Security controls relevant to check e signature

Encryption in transit: TLS 1.2+

Encryption at rest: AES-256

User authentication: Password, OAuth

Multi-factor options: SMS or email OTP

Audit logging: Comprehensive logs

Access controls: Role-based

Practical examples of checking e signatures

Two brief case illustrations show common verification workflows and outcomes when organizations check e signatures within routine processes.

Healthcare authorization

A hospital collects patient consent forms electronically and uses identity checks and timestamped logs to validate each signature

Identity verification via government ID upload
Ensures consent is traceable and linked to a patient record

Resulting in preserved compliance with HIPAA documentation expectations and a defensible audit record for care decisions.

Vendor contract approval

A procurement team routes supplier contracts through an e-signature workflow and reviews audit trails for signer IP, timestamps, and document hash

Bulk Send reduces manual distribution work
Confirms both signer intent and consistent contract versions across approvers

Leading to faster procurement cycles with documented proof of execution for vendor onboarding and audit readiness.

Best practices for reliable check e signature processes

Follow consistent policies and technical controls to ensure every verification produces defensible evidence and reduces manual review time.

Standardize verification procedures across teams

Document a single verification workflow that defines acceptable authentication methods, audit fields to inspect, and retention timelines so reviews are consistent and defensible in legal or compliance contexts.

Match authentication level to transaction risk

Require stronger identity checks, such as multi-factor authentication or verified ID, for high-risk agreements while allowing simpler methods for low-risk interactions to balance security and user friction.

Preserve complete audit trails with signed files

Store the signed document together with its metadata and audit log in encrypted archives to ensure the evidence needed for enforcement or regulatory review remains intact and retrievable.

Automate routine checks where possible

Use API-based validation, template enforcement, and automated integrity checks to reduce manual steps, accelerate verification, and minimize human error during signature reviews.

Connect airSlate SignNow to your apps

Check out airSlate SignNow integrations

Data accuracy, security, and compliance

airSlate SignNow is committed to protecting your sensitive information by complying with global industry-specific

Learn more about security

FAQs and troubleshooting when you check e signature

Common questions and troubleshooting steps to resolve issues encountered during signature verification are summarized below.

Why does the audit trail show missing fields
If fields are missing from the audit trail, confirm the document version reviewed is the final signed copy and that export settings include metadata. Check template locks and field-level logging settings to ensure signer actions are captured for verification.
Signer identity does not match expected information
When signer details differ, inspect authentication records such as verified email, OTP events, and any identity document uploads. Review IP and device metadata to determine if an alternate account was used and check for possible account sharing or credential compromise.
Signature validation shows altered document
If integrity checks fail, compare the stored file hash against the original signed version and review version history. A mismatch indicates post-signing modification; preserve all versions and logs for legal review and notify relevant stakeholders.
Unable to access embedded audit logs in exported PDF
Ensure export settings include embedded audit metadata and that the PDF viewer supports viewing attachments or signature properties. If necessary, download the platform-generated audit report separately for verification.
Authentication methods are not available for a signer
Confirm recipient contact information is valid and delivery channels are supported. If a preferred authentication method is unavailable, apply an alternate approved method consistent with your risk policy and document the change in the audit trail.
Dispute over signer intent or authorization
Gather the full audit trail, authentication evidence, and any related communication logs. Retain these records securely and consult legal counsel; documented verification steps and preserved metadata strengthen the position in dispute resolution.

Quick comparison when you check e signature across vendors

A concise comparison of signature verification and compliance features across common e-signature providers, with signNow listed first as Featured for clarity.

Criteria or Feature Name for Comparison	signNow (Recommended)	DocuSign	Adobe Sign
ESIGN and UETA Compliance
HIPAA support options
Audit trail detail level	Comprehensive	Comprehensive	Comprehensive
API and integration availability	REST API	REST API	REST API

be ready to get more

Get legally-binding signatures now!

Start your free trial

Risks of not properly checking e signatures

Contract disputes: Invalidated agreements

Regulatory fines: Noncompliance penalties

Data breaches: Unauthorized access

Operational delays: Rejected transactions

Reputational harm: Loss of trust

Evidence gaps: Insufficient proof

Make simpler complicated workflows

Create, perform, and control workflows of any difficulty, electronically from near any place. Scalable electronic signature functionality ensure you can share contracts with the right people in the correct order and define roles for every receiver. Perform document workflows faster and easier than ever before.

Automate document managing

Enhance intricate signing processes with airSlate SignNowï¿½s effective tools to improve your operation. Take control of your automated eSignature workflows to guarantee they're running at peak functionality with quick notices and reminders.

Optimize in team collaboration

Bring teams together in a secure, shared workspace. Manage documents, use form templates and notifications to produce better cross-company collaboration. Free your staff from having to hang out on recurring actions so that they can center on valuable, business-critical projects.

Integrate into your existing framework

Work your jobs with best-in-class integration. Capture Salesforce, Microsoft Teams, and SharePoint in one business stream. Connect your applications to a single unit for limitless possibilities and more productivity.

Stay compliant with market-leading data security

Feel safe understanding that your data remains secure by the newest in encryption security. airSlate SignNow is GDPR and eIDAS compliant and gives you transparence into your signing experience with court-admissible audit trails. Set up user authorization and rights to manage who has access to what.

be ready to get more

Get legally-binding signatures now!

Start free trial