A qualified electronic signature is an advanced electronic signature. It must be created with a qualified electronic signature creation device. It allows you to digitally sign documents. It works the same as a handwritten signature. If you have already submitted documents to the office via the Internet, you have certainly come across the issue of the trusted profile. Although with its help you also authorize documents, it is not an electronic signature. Qualified electronic signature has a wider application and it is not limited to communication with the state administration. A photocopy or image with a scan of a handwritten signature is not an electronic signature!
Qualified electronic signature – what can be signed with it?
An electronic signature allows you to sign virtually all documents that are in a form that allows you to attach a digital attachment with that signature. Such materials include
- correspondence with public administration offices
- contracts in electronic form, also between consumers
- company documentation, invoices, tender approvals
- commercial offers
- court letters
- Authentication of transactions in a bank
- author’s content
Qualified electronic signature – how to get it?
A qualified electronic signature is a commercial, paid service. To obtain it you must sign an agreement (maximum 3 years, because this is how long the electronic signature is valid) with the provider of the service (list of companies is available on the website of the National Certification Centre). After signing, you will receive a special cryptographic card, with a qualified certificate stored on it, as well as a card reader connected to your computer and software to be installed on your computer. You can also use a mobile application installed on your smartphone for authorization. Once the contract is signed, it receives a kind of electronic seal. Thus, it confirms that the document was signed by both parties in the same, unaltered form.
How to store a qualified signature?
A qualified signature, or more specifically a qualified certificate used to certify an electronic signature, must be stored on a cryptographic device or in an appropriate application that protects it. Such a signature is a more secure form of signing documents than its handwritten counterpart. This is due to the low possibility of forgery. The signature together with the certificate is assigned to a specific person and only that person can use it.