Europe Law Information

These differences in the definition of “signature” in national law have found expression in electronic authentication policy. US digital signature laws are generally directed toward removing barriers to the acceptance of electronic authentication and toward reduction of evidentiary uncertainties. By contrast, the German Digital Signature Law does not deal with the legal status of electronic signatures, but instead sets forth a high-security technical standard, motivated by similarly stringent requirements for pen-on-paper signatures. It is therefore not surprising that policymakers frequently have quite different concepts in mind when they discuss electronic signatures.

The international nature of the Internet makes it imperative that national definitions of “signature” be harmonized as they relate to electronic authentication. This can best be done by understanding the changing role of written signatures, educating policymakers and governments, and developing an internationally-oriented definition of “signature”. A basis for such a definition could be a scalable set of signature requirements based on the security needs of the particular application, such as whether electronic authentication was used to establish identity, to demonstrate a particular attribute of the signatory, or for some other purpose.