Advanced Electronic Signature with OTP (SEA) - Worldwide

The Advanced Electronic Signature service is simple and allows you to sign PDF documents remotely. The same document can be signed by multiple people, on one or more pages.

The process is simple:

• Send an API request specifying the document to be signed, the signatories' details (first name, last name, email address and/or mobile phone number), and the signing methods.
• Receive the identification and signing links automatically generated for each signatory.
• Send the links to the signatories, who access the platform and complete the identification and signing process. Identification can be performed with or without liveness verification, depending on the selected configuration.
• Download the signed and validated documents at the end of the process, together with the audit trail, the record containing the information and actions performed during the signing procedure.

The user receives a link to start the identification process, which can also be accessed via QR code. They simply need to photograph their identity document, take a selfie, and perform a few simple facial movements.

The system guides the user step by step and provides real-time feedback throughout the entire procedure, making identification simple, fast, and secure.

The signing process is the same in both cases. The only difference concerns the signatory identification method, which may or may not include a Liveness check.

1. Advanced Electronic Signature without Liveness

Identification is fully automated and based on artificial intelligence, providing fast, secure, and cost-effective verification.

During the procedure, the user records a video of both the front and back of their identity document, including movements and tilts of the document to enable authenticity checks. The service automatically extracts and validates data from identity documents issued in more than 190 countries and territories, integrating advanced AI-based authenticity checks and, when necessary, the support of a specialized fraud prevention team.

2. Advanced Electronic Signature with Liveness

This includes all the features of verification without Liveness, with the addition of Liveness detection, which verifies that the identified person is actually present during the procedure.

In addition to recording their identity document, the user is therefore required to record their face while performing specific facial movements. This additional check increases the level of security and helps prevent fraud attempts based on the use of images, videos, or other tools designed to simulate the user's presence.

Both methods comply with the GDPR and the European PSD2 Directive and are certified according to the ETSI standard.

Yes. The Advanced Electronic Signature with OTP is recognized under European Union law through the eIDAS and ETSI regulatory frameworks and complies with the GDPR.

The service includes signatory identification and, at the end of the procedure, Openapi makes both the signed document and the audit trail available. The audit trail is the record containing information and evidence relating to the signing process.

The audit trail makes it possible to technically reconstruct and verify the different stages of the procedure and can therefore represent important evidence in the event of disputes or challenges.

The information recorded in the audit trail includes:

• Procedure data: ID, creation date, sending date, and expiration date.
• Signatory data: first name, last name, email address, phone number, and IP address.
• Authentication details: method used, message sent, and validation time.

The original audit trail is retained for 10 years, in accordance with applicable regulations.

Openapi offers the following types of electronic signatures:

• Simple Electronic Signature with OTP (SES)
• Advanced Electronic Signature with OTP (AES)
• Automatic Qualified Electronic Signature (QES)
• Automatic Qualified Electronic Signature with OTP (QES)
• Automatic Qualified Electronic Seal

For each signing process, the interface can be branded with the following customizations:

• Custom Logo
• Sidebar background color
• Sidebar title and text color
• Footer background color
• Header title and text color
• Button text, background, and hover colors
• Signing button text, background, and hover colors
• Option to hide the Sidebar, Header, and button for downloading the validated or signed document
• Redirect URL after completion of the signing process
• Redirect URL in case the signing process is cancelled

Yes. At the end of the signing process, you can use the API to request the signed document, as well as a copy of the audit trail.

The audit trail is the document containing all the information relating to the successful completion of the signature process. In the event of a dispute, this file makes it possible to technically reproduce every step of the procedure.

The audit trail contains data relating to the procedure (ID, creation date, sending date, and expiration date), signatories (first name, last name, email address, phone number, and IP address), and signatory authentication (authentication method, message sent, and validation time).

In accordance with applicable regulations, the original audit trail is retained for 10 years.

The document will be available for 3 months, while the audit trail will be available for 10 years, as required by applicable regulations.

The standard used to apply the signature is PAdES (PDF Advanced Electronic Signature).

The Advanced Electronic Signature (AES) can be used to sign many types of digital documents, particularly when the law does not require a specific type of signature or the involvement of a public official.

Common use cases include:

• Contracts and agreements: commercial, supply, and collaboration agreements, agreements with customers and suppliers, and other contractual documents.
• Business documents: purchase orders, quotations, minutes, declarations, authorizations, and documentation relating to internal processes.
• Administrative documents: forms, applications, declarations, and other communications that can be electronically signed in accordance with applicable regulations and procedures.
• Financial and insurance documentation: contracts, mandates, forms, and other documentation relating to financial and insurance services, where applicable regulations allow them to be signed using an AES.
• Healthcare documentation: consents and other healthcare documents that allow electronic signatures, in compliance with the specific requirements established by sector-specific regulations.

However, an AES cannot be used indiscriminately for every document. Certain legal acts may require a specific form, a Qualified Electronic Signature (QES), the involvement of a public official, or other formalities required by law. In Italy, for example, specific limitations apply to certain categories of legal acts.

For this reason, before using an AES for a specific document, it is important to verify the requirements established by the applicable regulations and by the country in which the document is intended to produce legal effects.

In general, the eIDAS Regulation establishes that an electronic signature cannot be denied legal effect or admissibility as evidence solely because it is in electronic form or because it is not a qualified electronic signature.

No. Password-protected PDF documents cannot be signed: the system requires files to be accessible without restrictions in order to complete the signing process correctly.

The service is provided in real time.