I remember watching Western movies where the royal family would sign off a letter with a crested wax seal that signified authority. Your signature is a powerful representation of who you are, signatures are also the cornerstone of agreements, contracts, and legal documents. And as technology advances, so do our options for signing, presenting a choice between tradition and innovation; that is, scanned signatures and e-signatures.
Today, we’ll write about the intricacies of each method to help you determine the best fit for your needs.
What are scanned signatures?
Scanned signatures offer a blend of tradition and technology. This method involves physically signing a document with a pen or stylus on paper, scanning it using a scanner or smartphone camera, and then sending it electronically. The resulting image of the signature is embedded into the document, providing a visual representation of the signer’s identity. While scanned signatures provide a sense of familiarity and authenticity, they come with limitations. Despite being easy to implement, scanned signatures lack the robust security measures of their digital counterparts, making them susceptible to forgery and alteration.
What are e-signatures?
E-signatures revolutionize the signing process by digitizing it entirely. Unlike scanned signatures, e-signatures are created electronically without pen and paper. Instead, they rely on cryptographic algorithms to generate a unique digital fingerprint, or hash, for each signature. E-signatures offer unparalleled security and traceability, making them tamper-evident and legally binding across many countries. Additionally, e-signatures streamline workflows by eliminating the need for printing, scanning, and mailing, resulting in significant time and cost savings.
Choosing Your Signature Style
When deciding between scanned signatures and e-signatures, consider factors such as document nature, security requirements, and workflow preferences. Scanned signatures may be suitable for informal agreements or in-house documents. However, for critical documents requiring high levels of security and compliance, e-signatures are the much preferred choice. It’s best to assess your needs and explore integration capabilities with existing systems to determine the best signature style for your unique requirements and goals.
Can you make your hand-written mail into an e-signature?
There is e-signature software, like Flowmono, that allows you the option of drawing your typical signature like you would with pen and paper.
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution in the debate of scanned signatures versus e-signatures. Each method has its pros and cons, offering a range of options to meet diverse needs.
On Flowmono, you have the option of uploading your scanned signature. It can make the signing process easy, peezy, breezy.
Flowmono is a leading e-signature software that allows you to sign, send, and save documents all in one place. What’s your signature style? Whichever method you lean towards, Flowmono is here to support your e-signing journey. Let’s redefine signatures, one signature at a time.
