Using the SignNow PKI Technology for Secure eSignatures
airSlate SignNow follows the PKI security protocol to provide the highest level of security and global acceptance of digital signatures. Learn how airSlate SignNow empowers users to send documents for safe digital signatures.
Using the signNow pki technology refers to employing public key infrastructure (PKI) within signNow to issue, manage, and verify digital certificates that bind cryptographic keys to signers and documents. PKI in this context supports certificate-based signatures, stronger signer authentication, and tamper-evident signatures by combining asymmetric keys, certificate authorities, and hashing. For U.S. users, this approach can provide auditable evidence of signer identity and document integrity while interoperating with signNow features like audit logs, role-based access, and secure storage to support regulatory needs such as ESIGN and UETA compliance.
Why adopt PKI for your electronic signatures
Using certificate-based signing through the signNow pki technology increases cryptographic assurance, streamlines identity verification, and produces signatures with robust tamper detection, useful for regulated transactions and high-value agreements.
Common implementation challenges to anticipate
Key and certificate lifecycle management requires defined processes for issuance, renewal, and revocation to avoid expired credentials.
Integrating PKI into existing workflows can need coordination with IT, identity providers, and administrative policy updates.
User onboarding must include clear instructions and support for installing certificates or hardware tokens to avoid signing delays.
Compliance and recordkeeping need careful configuration to ensure audit trails and retention meet legal standards.
Typical user roles when deploying signNow PKI
Compliance Officer
A Compliance Officer configures signature policies and document retention rules, evaluates how certificate-based signatures satisfy ESIGN and UETA, and coordinates audits. They maintain documentation of certificate authorities used and ensure that signature evidence meets internal and external regulatory expectations.
IT Administrator
An IT Administrator integrates the PKI stack with corporate identity systems, manages certificate enrollment and revocation, and supports users with installation of certificates or hardware tokens. They also monitor cryptographic key storage and backup processes to reduce operational risk.
Organizations and teams that commonly use PKI signing
Legal, financial, healthcare, and government teams frequently select certificate-based signing where stringent identity assurance and non-repudiation are required.
Legal departments handling contracts and court filings that require strong evidence of signer identity.
Financial services teams processing loan documents and account authorizations with heightened auditability and control.
Healthcare administrators transmitting regulated records needing secure authentication and access controls.
Smaller teams within these sectors often adopt PKI selectively for high-risk templates while continuing standard eSignatures for routine forms.
Technical capabilities that complement signNow PKI
These features support practical use of certificate-based signatures and help integrate PKI into broader document lifecycle processes.
Role-Based Access
Assign and enforce roles so only authorized users can send or require certificate-backed signatures, reducing the chance of misapplied signature policies.
Template Controls
Create templates with embedded certificate signature fields, preconfigured validation rules, and fixed retention instructions to standardize high-assurance signing workflows.
Secure Storage
Store signed documents and associated certificate metadata in encrypted storage with controlled access and retention settings aligned to compliance obligations.
Detailed Audit Trails
Capture signer certificate fingerprints, validation outcomes, timestamps, and IP metadata to provide forensic evidence of each signing transaction.
API Automation
Automate certificate-based signing operations and integrate with identity providers or enterprise PKI for streamlined enrollment and verification processes.
Revocation Checking
Built-in OCSP or CRL checks ensure signatures are validated against current certificate status at verification time.
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Integration features relevant to signNow PKI
Key signNow capabilities help operationalize PKI by simplifying certificate use, validation, and auditability across document workflows and connected systems.
Certificate Enforcement
Policy-based enforcement ensures that specific templates require certificate-backed signatures; administrators can mandate certificate validation, define accepted certificate authorities, and link certificate requirements to signer roles to maintain consistent application across high-risk documents.
Automated Validation
Automated OCSP or CRL checks occur during signature verification to confirm certificate status; this reduces manual validation steps and ensures revoked or expired certificates are detected before accepting a signed document as final.
Audit Log Integration
Detailed audit entries capture certificate metadata, signature hashes, timestamps, and validation results; these logs are stored with the document record to support compliance reviews and legal evidentiary needs without separate manual reporting.
API Support
APIs allow programmatic submission of certificate-based signing requests, retrieval of signature metadata, and integration with identity providers or enterprise PKI systems so certificate workflows can be embedded in existing business processes.
How certificate signing flows in signNow
A simplified flow shows how signNow applies PKI components when a certificate-based signature is requested and verified.
Initiate Signing: Sender attaches certificate requirement to request.
Authenticate Signer: Signer presents certificate or uses token.
Apply Signature: signNow binds signed hash with certificate.
Validate Later: Verifier checks cert chain and integrity.
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Quick setup: Enabling signNow PKI for a template
Follow these concise steps to configure certificate-based signing for a document template in signNow while maintaining compliance and auditability.
01
Obtain Certificates: Request or issue X.509 certificates for signers.
02
Configure Template: Mark certificate signature fields on document.
03
Set Policies: Define signer authentication and retention rules.
04
Test Workflow: Perform end-to-end test signing and verification.
Managing audit trails for certificate-signed documents
Maintain consistent audit records and searchable metadata for every certificate-based transaction to support compliance and dispute resolution.
01
Capture Metadata:
Record cert thumbprint and issuer
02
Record Validation:
Log OCSP or CRL results
03
Timestamping:
Store signed timestamp data
04
Immutable Storage:
Preserve logs in readonly archives
05
Searchable Index:
Enable metadata indexing
06
Retention Policy:
Apply legal retention rules
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Enterprise-grade security. airSlate SignNow helps you comply with global security standards.
Configure these workflow settings to ensure certificate requirements, notifications, and validations are applied consistently to templates and signing requests.
Feature
Configuration
Certificate Requirement
Template enforced
Validation Method
OCSP check
Reminder Frequency
48 hours
Certificate Authorities
Approved CA list
Retention Period
7 years
Platforms and device requirements for certificate signing
Certificate-based signing typically works across modern desktop and mobile platforms but requires attention to certificate storage and browser or OS support.
Windows Desktops:Supports smartcard/token
macOS Devices:System keychain support
Mobile Platforms:Limited token support
For consistent experience, use managed device policies and supported browsers; when mobile token support is limited, consider alternative authentication methods or managed certificate profiles to maintain security without disrupting signer workflows.
Core security components enabled by PKI
Asymmetric Keys:Public/private key pairs
Digital Certificates:X.509 certificate records
Certificate Authority:Trusted CA issuance
Signature Hashing:Cryptographic hash algorithms
Revocation Lists:CRL or OCSP checks
Tamper Detection:Signature integrity checks
Industry examples of signNow PKI in use
Practical examples help clarify when certificate-based signing is appropriate and how it changes operational detail.
Mortgage Closing
A lender uses certificate-based signing for loan documents to verify each signer's identity against bank records and record signature timestamps.
Certificates are issued to verified loan officers and borrowers during onboarding.
This reduces the likelihood of later repudiation and strengthens evidentiary weight.
Resulting in clearer audit trails and smoother regulatory review for loan originations.
Medical Records Release
A healthcare provider applies PKI signing when releasing protected health information to third parties to ensure the signer is an authorized clinician.
Certificates map to staff credentials managed by the provider's identity system.
The benefit is a documented cryptographic link between signer identity and the released record.
Leading to stronger compliance records under HIPAA and easier incident investigation.
Operational best practices for PKI signing
Apply clear policies and consistent technical controls when using the signNow pki technology to reduce risk and simplify compliance.
Define certificate authority and acceptance policy
Specify which certificate authorities are trusted and publish an explicit acceptance policy. Maintain documentation that links certificate sources to approved identity verification procedures and periodically review trusted CA lists to remove deprecated or untrusted issuers.
Implement certificate lifecycle management
Track issuance, expiration, renewal, and revocation of certificates tied to signers. Integrate automated reminders for renewals, and ensure timely revocation when personnel depart or keys are compromised to avoid accepting invalid signatures.
Use layered authentication and access controls
Combine certificate-based signing with device or account-level controls to reduce exposure from stolen keys. Enforce least-privilege access, enable multi-factor authentication for certificate enrollment, and limit template visibility to needed roles.
Preserve verifiable audit records
Ensure audit logs include certificate details, validation results, and checksums of signed content. Store logs and signed documents in a secure, immutable manner for retention periods required by applicable laws or internal policy.
Common questions address certificate handling, verification failures, and compliance concerns to help administrators and signers troubleshoot routine PKI issues.
Validation may fail because the certificate has expired, been revoked, or because the signer presented a certificate from an issuer not trusted by your configured policy. Network issues can also prevent OCSP or CRL checks, so verify connectivity and that the configured trusted certificate authorities include the issuing CA.
Revoke certificates promptly through your certificate authority or identity provider. Update signNow trust settings if necessary and document the revocation event. Also ensure signed documents are flagged if they relied on the revoked certificate and follow internal procedures for reauthorization or re-signing when required.
signNow stores signature hashes, certificate metadata, validation outcomes, timestamps, and related audit entries with the document. This combined evidence supports verification of document integrity and signer identity for compliance and legal review.
External verifiers can confirm signature integrity and certificate validity if the signed document contains embedded signature metadata and the verifier has access to the issuing CA or OCSP responder. Provide the verifier with the signed package and public certificate chain to enable independent checks.
Immediately suspend trusting the compromised CA, revoke affected certificates, notify impacted parties, and work with your CA to follow their incident response. Update signNow trust lists and review documents signed under the CA for required remediation steps.
Certificate-based signatures can provide strong evidence of signer identity and intent consistent with ESIGN and UETA when combined with clear consent records and reliable authentication. Maintain associated audit logs and document retention to substantiate the electronic signature's legal validity in U.S. jurisdictions.
Digital vs. paper signing: feature comparison
This concise comparison highlights practical differences between certificate-backed electronic signatures and traditional paper signatures across common verification and storage criteria.
A typical rollout of signNow PKI spans from planning to live operation with distinct phases and milestones to manage risk and user adoption.
01
Planning and Policy
Define trust and certificate policies.
02
CA Selection
Choose internal or external certificate authority.
03
Integration
Connect PKI to signNow and identity systems.
04
Pilot Testing
Run pilot templates and user tests.
05
Training
Train administrators and signers.
06
Go-Live
Switch production templates to PKI.
07
Monitoring
Track certificate status and logs.
08
Review
Audit policies and update as needed.
Operational risks and potential penalties
Expired Certificates:Document signatures may be contested
Improper Revocation:Continued acceptance of invalid keys
Misconfigured Authorities:Weakened trust chains
Poor Key Storage:Increased compromise risk
Insufficient Audit Trails:Noncompliance findings
Regulatory Violations:Financial or legal penalties
Pricing and plan comparison for certificate-capable eSignature providers
Overview of representative entry-level pricing and common plan limitations; actual prices vary by contract and enterprise agreements.
Pricing Comparison Table Header
Provider
Monthly Price
Users Included
API Access
Typical Use Case
signNow (Featured) Plan
signNow
From $8/mo
1 user
Available
SMB document workflows
Adobe Sign Standard Plan
Adobe Sign
From $24.99/mo
1 user
Available
Creative and enterprise needs
DocuSign Standard Plan
DocuSign
From $25/mo
1 user
Available
Broad enterprise adoption
HelloSign Essentials Plan
HelloSign
From $15/mo
1 user
Available
Freelancers and small teams
PandaDoc Business Plan
PandaDoc
From $49/mo
1 user
Available
Document-heavy sales teams
Everything you need to know about the airSlate SignNow PKI
What are digital signatures?
Digital signatures are often used in highly regulated industries and regions to ensure that an authorized sender has signed a document and it was not modified in transit. A digital signature is generated using a trusted digital ID, aka a digital certificate or public key certificate. An accredited Certificate Authority (CA) issues a digital certificate after validating the requestor's identity.
How does digital signing work?
Digital signatures use the public-key cryptography method to generate a pair of private and public keys, included in a digital certificate. When a signer adds their digital signature using a private key, the digital certificate is also cryptographically bound to a document. During the verification process, the linked public key decrypts a signature, ensuring its authenticity and validity.
What is a PKI?
Public Key Infrastructure is a security technology that enables digital signature processes. PKI consists of the roles, policies, procedures, and systems needed to create digital signatures, administer digital certificates, and manage public keys. PKI facilitates the trusted electronic identities for individuals or institutions with digital certificates and a Certificate Authority.
How to send a document for signature using PKI
Upload a document to your airSlate SignNow account and open it in the editor. Drag and drop fillable fields and assign roles.
Click SAVE AND INVITE once your document is ready for sending.
Add recipient emails, set the signing order, and check the box Send using GlobalSign PKI signature.
Note: only eligible organizations can send documents using the PKI technology. Contact us for details.
How to add a secure digital signature under PKI requirements
Once you receive a signature request, click to open a document and add your digital signature in seconds. You can draw, type, or upload an image of your signature.
How to view a digital certificate
Once every signer has signed your document, you can download it and view the digital certificate. To open a digital certificate, open your signed document in Adobe Acrobat Reader®. Click on the digital signature and select Signature Properties > Show Signer’s Certificate.
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