Signing the dotted

line The evolution

of the signature
The signature has for a long time been a staple of our identity.
Used to prove who we are on numerous documents, each
person with their own unique spin on letters ubiquitous to us
all. However, that all came under threat in recent years as
technology has almost completely replaced the written word.
Does this mean we will forever lose something that was once so
precious to us, an indicator of our unique identity?
The signature has always been of great historical importance,
signifying this man was here. Whether it be John Hancock
placing his John Hancock on the declaration of independence
or Banksys name inscribed on some graffiti on a wall in the
Gaza strip, those signatures were of historical importance and
uniquely identified that man.
Signatures are so unique to the individual that they became
sought after, the autograph signature of sports stars and
celebrities are collectors items and are often used as proof that
a diehard fan met that celebrity a treasured memory of the
occasion.
However, the signature is falling out of society. Mobile
payments and chip and pin means there is no longer a need for
the signature on the back of the credit card, the same chip
system is making the passport signature increasingly less
important. Letters now most commonly sent in email form,
have no requirement for signature.
However, there are signs that the signature may yet be saved.
The e-signature is starting to gain momentum of use, and could
increasingly become important in identifying legitimacy of
documents by putting the persons unique stamp on it
similar to the autograph signature has in the past. The
Australian Parliament has recently bolstered the legitimacy of
the e-signature by suggesting signed e-petitions are now going
to be accepted under-strict conditions.
The e-signature is especially going to be a huge boost for
document heavy industries such as financial services or
insurance brokers, who have wades of contracts to sign and
deals to make, but cant rely on technologies such as chip-and-
pin. Whereas the increasingly digitalisation of documents has
presented an issue with authentication in the past for
companies existing within these industries, this can now be
solved by simply placing the e-signature on the document.
This not only saves paper, cost and time for these companies,
but the e-signature, when integrated with an encrypted file
sharing solution, is now one of the most secure ways
businesses can communicate with clients when handling
sensitive materials. For businesses that frankly cant do secure
and compliant business without signatures, this is the future for
them.
We may no longer write our signature every day, and we may
not use it as the main indicator of our identity and proof of who
we are, but we do still sometimes need to sign on that dotted
line whether it be to fight for a cause we believe in or sign an
essential document for those occasions the signature must
not be forgotten, but evolve into the digital space.
Lindsay Brown is the Regional Director APAC for Citrix Mobility
Apps.

A signature (/sntr/; from Latin: signare, "to sign") is a

handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name,
nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person
writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. The
writer of a signature is a signatory or signer. Similar to a
handwritten signature, a signature work describes the work
as readily identifying its creator. A signature may be confused
with an autograph, which is chiefly an artistic signature. This
can lead to confusion when people have both an autograph and
signature and as such some people in the public eye keep their
signatures private whilst fully publishing their autograph.
Function and types

Signature of Benjamin Franklin

The traditional function of a signature is evidential: it is to give

evidence of:

1. The provenance of the document (identity)

2. The intention (will) of an individual with regard to that

document

For example, the role of a signature in many consumer

contracts is not solely to provide evidence of the identity of the
contracting party, but also to provide evidence of deliberation
and informed consent.

In many countries, signatures may be witnessed and recorded

in the presence of a notary public to carry additional legal
force. On legal documents, an illiterate signatory can make a
"mark" (often an "X" but occasionally a personalized symbol),
so long as the document is countersigned by a literate witness.
In some countries, illiterate people place a thumbprint on legal
documents in lieu of a written signature.

In the United States, signatures encompass marks and actions

of all sorts that are indicative of identity and intent. The legal
rule is that unless a statute specifically prescribes a particular
method of making a signature it may be made in any number of
ways. These include by a mechanical or rubber stamp facsimile.
A signature may be made by the purported signatory;
alternatively, someone else duly authorized by the signatory,
acting in the signer's presence and at the signatory's direction,
may make the signature.
Many individuals have much more fanciful signatures than their
normal cursive writing, including
elaborate ascenders, descenders and exotic flourishes, much as
one would find in calligraphic writing. As an example, the final
"k" in John Hancock's famous signature on the US Declaration
of Independence loops back to underline his name. This kind of
flourish is also known as a paraph.

Signature of Mustafa Kemal Atatrk

Several cultures whose languages use writing systems other

than alphabets do not share the Western notion of signatures
per se: the "signing" of one's name results in a written product
no different from the result of "writing" one's name in the
standard way. For these languages, to write or to sign involves
the same written characters. Also see Calligraphy.

Mechanically produced signatures

East Asian name seal

Fingerprints may be used instead of signatures where the
signer is illiterate. Here on an Indian legal document of 1952.

Special signature machines, called autopens, are capable of

automatically reproducing an individual's signature. These are
typically used by people required to sign a lot of printed matter,
such as celebrities, heads of state or CEOs.

More recently, Members of Congress in the United States have

begun having their signature made into a TrueType font file.
This allows staff members in the Congressman's office to easily
reproduce it on correspondence, legislation, and official
documents.

In the East Asian languages of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean,

people typically use stamp-like objects known as name-
seals with the name carved in tensho script (seal script) in lieu
of a handwritten signature.

Digital Signature
Digital Signature Is the First Step to
Paperless Office

Introduction
Nowadays the speed of business connections is increasing
rapidly. In order to be in the frontline of the world competition,
companies are adopting new technologies such as web
conferences, distant work places, internet banking, & usage of
electronic documents. Electronic documents are efficient in
commercial, cost and environment perspectives. Electronic
signature concept is growing in its popularity; the new wave of
electronic office concept will flow over the business world very
soon. There are strong drives to replace paper-based document
circulation with electronic one, replace handwritten signature
with electronic one. However, doing business via internet or
signing e-documents require more security, trust, traceability
and accountability. The new technology of advanced digital
signature has created a base for a secured paperless office.
Enforceability of electronic documents & digital signatures
allows easily exchange legal electronic documents, reduce the
process costs & time connecting with mail and printing. Digital
signature provides more authenticity in comparison to
handwritten signature.

History of Electronic Signatures

The first idea of using electronic signature backs to 1861 when

Morse code was used to send signed agreements by telegraphy.
Such agreements were confirmed as enforceable by the New
Hampshire Court in 1869. [Howley vs. Whipple 48 N.H.487]:"It
makes no difference whether [the telegraph] operator writes
the offer or the acceptance in the presence of his principal and
by his express direction, with a steel pen an inch long attached
to an ordinary penholder, or whether his pen be a copper wire a
thousand miles long. In either case the thought is
communicated to the paper by the use of the finger resting
upon the pen; nor does it make any difference that in one case
common record ink is used, while in the other case a subtler
fluid, known as electricity, performs the same office."

In 1980s many companies start using fax machines for signing

time-sensitive agreements. Almost all commercial contracts
between distant parties included articles permitted signing
documents by fax (and then sending originals by post). But due
to technology development and widespread of PC users in
1999-2001 the new era started and many countries enacted
several legal acts regarding electronic signatures and
documents to provide proper legal framework. In 1999 the
European Union adopted EU Directive on Electronic Signatures,
in 2000 Bill Clinton signed US ESIGN act, in 2001 Vladimir Putin
signed Federal Law About electronic digital signature and
many other countries has adopted legal acts in this sphere in
order to define the liability & validity of electronic signatures
and enforce this practice in business world.

Technology of Digital Signature

What is an electronic signature? First of all, it is a method of

electronic document authentication. Electronic signatures have
a variety of forms: e.g. a PIN number, I accept' button used
when buying something on-line, signature by digital pen pad
device, digital signature, etc. The higher value transactions
need better security and most people who are using electronic
signature are confronted with two issues: (1) security (2)
admissibility by law. The answer for these two questions is
advanced electronic digital signature. It very crucial to
distinguish between digital signature & electronic signature.
Digital signature is a type of electronic signature which is
created with asymmetric codes (also known as asymmetric
cryptography or public key system). The digital signature
makes a recipient of document to believe that the message was
created by a signatory & was not altered in transit. The
authenticity is secured by public & private keys. The private
key, which is known only to the signatory, and is used to create
the digital signature and change the message into encrypted
form. The public key is used by a receiving party to verify the
digital signature and decrypt the message. To simplify, let's
imagine that there is a window with two locks. One key (public
key) allows you to open a window shutter & see what is inside
of the house; the other key (private key) allows opening a
window and putting anything inside the house.

Digital signature is considered the most secured at the

moment, but it can't guarantee 100% security. The
international standard on information security management is
ISO/IEC 27001. On one hand digital signature is more secure
then handwritten signature, on other hand due to technology
progress soon digital signature could become vulnerable to
forgery.

In order to increase security digital signature keys are created

by Certified Service Providers (CSPs). CSPs issue special
certificates to electronic signatures which certifies the
admissibility & reliability of the signature. Usually the CPS are
fully controlled by the law. A digital signature which is based on
a qualified certificate has strong jurisdiction value.

It is affordable for ordinary people with any PC skills to use

digital signatures. The client (the owner of the signature) gets
the key store device (e.g. flash memory, touch memory, smart
card, etc.). In order to sign the prepared electronic document,
the owner of the signature inserts key store device into
computer, clicks a mouse and the preinstalled digital signature
program puts signature into document automatically. What is
done by the other user, who verifies signature? The other user's
program decrypts the message & if the program detects that
the message signed is the message which was created when
the signature was decrypted, the other user with public key will
know that the signed data has not been changed.

Legal Aspects

Many laws were adopted all over the world to facilitate e-

commerce, e-government services & use of electronic records
and signatures. In many countries electronic signatures are
legally binding, but laws concerning electronic signatures are
not precise enough leaving space for confusion &
misunderstanding. If we take for comparison three legal acts of
US, EU and Russia, we will find that the legal acts are different
in scale & content.

US E-Sign

Despite the fact that many US states has already created their
own local laws regarding electronic commerce & signatures or
signed UETA (Uniform Electronic Transactions Act) , on June 30,
2000, US Congress enacted the Electronic Signatures in Global
and National Commerce Act ("ESIGN") in order to facilitate the
use of electronic records and signatures in national and foreign
commerce by ensuring the validity and legal effect of electronic
contracts and to develop a nationwide standard while
preserving the ability of states to modify, limit or supersede
ESign through adoption of UETA.

The main provision of ESIGN is to ensure that electronic

records, signatures, contracts are not denied legally just
because they are in electronic format.

ESIGN defines electronic signature as an electronic sound,

symbol, or process, attached to or logically associated with a
contract or other record and executed or adopted by a person
with the intent to sign the record.

EU Directive

In 1999 the European Union issued EU Directive on Electronic

Signatures which gives guidelines and creates framework for
member states to achieve certain results in electronic signature
sphere.

EU Directive on Electronic Signatures describes three types of

electronic signatures: weak electronic signature, advanced
electronic signature and advanced electronic signature based
on qualified certificate (or strong digital signature). A digital
signature which is based on a qualified certificate has the
strongest jurisdiction value in comparison to weak electronic
signature & simple advanced electronic signature.

RF Federal E-Law

The basic legal act on digital signature in Russia is Federal Law

About electronic digital signature which was embodied on
January, 10 2002. The main purpose of creation of this
document is to provide basis when the digital electronic
signature is considered equal to handwritten signature. The law
covers main areas of creation & usage of digital electronic
signatures and functioning of certification service providers.

The main legislative acts on digital signature are Federal Law

About electronic digital signature, Federal law About
information, informatization, and information security, Federal
Law About personal information and Civil Code of Russian
Federation.

Federal Law About electronic digital signature defines

electronic digital signature is a requisite of electronic
document, which is designed to protect the electronic
document from forgery, and created using cryptographic coding
of information with private key, which ensures identification of
the owner of certified key and makes sure that the information
in electronic document was not altered. This law also states
that an electronic digital signature (based on asymmetric
cryptographic algorithms) in an electronic document has the
same effect as an autograph signature on a hard-copy
document if the following conditions are met:

1. Key certificate, which is related to electronic digital

signature, is valid at the moment of checking or at the
moment of e-document signing, if the date of signing
could be proved.

2. the authenticity of the signature is proved

3. The electronic digital signature is used according to

information included in the certificate of signature key.
(Chapter 2, article 4, clause 1)

Chapter 3 regulates the activity of Certifying centres, which

issue certificates for digital signatures, and relationships
between certified centre, owner of the digital signature and the
government.

There are two main conditions in this law: both private and
public keys should be issued by a certified service provider and
the owner of the signature is only a natural person. The law
provides clear conditions of digital signature usage

The Part One, article 160 of Civil Code of Russian Federation

also permits usage of digital signature: The use of a facsimile
copy of a signature by means of mechanical or diverse copying,
an electronic digital signature or diverse analog manual
signatures, is permitted in cases and in the manner prescribed
by law and diverse legal codes in undertaking contracts or
agreements among parties. Federal law About information,
informatization, and information security confirms that the
digital signature is enforceable The legal force of a document
that is stored, processed and transmitted with the help of
automated information and telecommunication systems can be
confirmed by an electronic digital signature. The legal force of
an electronic digital signature is recognized by the presence in
an automated intelligent system of a programmed means of
identifying a signature and observing predicted characteristics
in its use (article 5)

The most interesting issue is that both ESIGN and EU Directive

are technology neutral, living space for misunderstanding &
adequate freedom.

According to Erkki Liikanen, member of the European

commission, responsible for enterprise and the information
society, EU and Russian laws are very compatible, but there are
two main differences:

-Both the EU and UNCITRAL have adopted a technologically

neutral approach to authentication based on electronic
signature rather than the digital signature approach currently
adopted by Russia. Although Russia's choice may be founded
on security considerations, we would recommend that further
consideration be given to the electronic signature approach
which has a wider applicability and potentially a longer validity
because of its technological neutrality,
- The EU Directive on electronic commerce covers all
information society services whereas the draft Russian law is
limited to the conclusion of contracts

UN Convention

In May 2007 Russia has signed UN convention on the Use of

Electronic Communications in International Contracting. The
convention came into force in December 2007 & Russia
became the tenth country, which allows the international
contracts negotiated electronically are valid and enforceable as
contracts in hard-copies. The convention is applicable only for
international agreements excluding contracts for personal,
family or household purposes and other particular cases
covered in article 2 of the Convention.

There are two ways for parties to exclude usage of the

convention: (1) include clause into the agreement, which
excludes the application of the convention (2) avoid exchange
of information via electronic means.

The convention describes in details how to determine the

location of the parties. The main provisions are: (1) the party
has the right to determine its location in the contracts, (2) if the
location is not stated by the agreement, and party has varied
locations, then the place business will be chosen the closest
relationship to the relevant contract.

There is a high contradiction between local Russian law and UN

convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in
International Contracting. As the international law supersedes
the local laws, but some agreements according to Russian law
should be done in hard-copy and should be archived for a long
time. The best solution for such situation (for high value
contracts) is usage of electronic digital signatures which are
already enforceable in Russia by the Federal Law About
electronic digital signatures. If this case the two conditions are
in force: (1) there is a prove that documents are authentic (2)
the documents could be presented at any time.
Why We Are Afraid to Sign E-Agreements?

Russian society traditionally & historically is very bureaucratic

& tends to be suspicious to documents. Despite that the federal
law on digital signature was adopted in 2001, we are very far
from usage of this system. As far as government & state
authorities will not start using electronic digital signatures, the
Russian world of business commerce will not use it at full force.

E-documents could tremendously simplify my professional life,

but nowadays signing electronic agreement seem to me almost
impossible due to the following reasons:

1. Legal acts are far from ideal, there is room for Some laws
are incompatible with other laws. For example, there is no
clear indication about e-document and digital signature in
Russian Tax code and many our partners in regions even
don't want to hear about electronic agreements.

2. People are very resistant to new technologies, especially

people working in state companies.

The way I work with our partners, which are located very far,
we first sign documents by fax, then we send via post the hard-
copy of documents.

But there is very positive trend in electronic documentary area.

First of all, Russia has developed a system of electronic
governance. This year the e-government will start working at a
full force. Secondly, our country has its own cryptographic
standards, Russia have own algorithms for creating and
verifying digital signatures. Step by step, people will start using
electronic documents and I believe in the nearest future

Electronic signatures have been around for many years. In fact,

one would be surprised to know that the validity of an
electronic signature was first dealt with in 1867 by US courts
which recognized the validity of a signature transmitted via
telegraph.
Digitalization imposes, and almost automatically requires, the
use of electronic signatures. An overview of the North American
legal framework illustrates certain technicalities and
misconceptions related to e-signatures.

E-signature vs. digital signature

The terms "electronic signature" and "digital signature" are

often used interchangeably. However, they are different
concepts and have distinct sets of features and functions.

Essentially, an electronic signature consists of affixing a tag to

a document (whose support is electronic, i.e. PDF) to express
consent. More specifically, attaching a code to a message
guarantees the integrity of the document and the
authentication of the sender. It is important to note that
"electronic signature" is a generic term that includes several
electronic processes, including a digital signature which is
based on asymmetric cryptography. In other words, an
electronic signature is merely a legal concept. It is a lasting
representation and captures someone's intent.

On the other hand, a digital signature is simply an encryption

technology within the electronic signature. It works with an
electronic signature and not as an electronic signature. A digital
signature is "a signature that is specifically based on
asymmetric cryptography, coupled with a one-way hash
function." Thus, a digital signature supports an electronic
signature and provides a higher degree of certainty for the
recipient.

Legal framework

Many jurisdictions have adopted legislation related to electronic

signatures. To that end, the main purpose has been to provide
for the authenticity of the person using the signature, the
capture of intent and the integrity of a message or document
on which the signature is affixed.

The North American legal framework that covers e-signatures

has been guided by the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic
Commerce (MLEC), and the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic
Signatures (MLES). A technology-neutral approach is taken,
"which avoids favouring the use of any specific technology or
process. This means in practice that legislation based on this
Model Law may recognize both digital signatures based on
cryptography (such as public key infrastructure or PKI) and
electronic signatures using other technologies."

In other words, an electronically signed document is perfectly

admissible in evidence and has the same effect as if it were on
paper. This legislative approach is considered as a "minimalist"
approach considering that there is no particular type of
technology adopted to replace a manuscript signature in the
digital environment.

In Canada and the United States, any form of electronic symbol

or message can qualify as a signature. The main emphasis is on
how intention is communicated.

United States

In 2000, the US Congress adopted the Electronic Signatures in

Global and National Commerce Act (E-SIGN). It is a federal
statute which pre-empts state law in case of conflict between
the two. Of interest, E-SIGN does not apply to states which have
enacted the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA).

Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA)

Section 5 of the UETA provides that the act "applies only to

transactions between parties each of which has agreed to
conduct transactions by electronic means." It does not create a
new system of legal rules for the electronic marketplace, but
rather ensures that electronic transactions are equivalent to
and as enforceable as paper-based transactions.

The UETA defines an electronic signature as "an electronic

sound, symbol, or process attached to or logically associated
with an electronic record and executed or adopted by a person
with the intent to sign the electronic record."
Essentially, the UETA ensures that contracts and transactions
are enforceable and valid notwithstanding the fact that an
electronic process is applied.

E-SIGN

As mentioned above, E-SIGN bestows an equivalent legal status

to electronic signatures and electronic documents. Similar to
the UETA, due to its technology-neutral approach, the parties
are free to decide which electronic process they want to apply
to their electronic transaction.

It is important to note that E-SIGN requires consent from

customers. Moreover, prior to consenting, the consumer "must
be provided with a clear and conspicuous statement" outlining
their rights.

E-SIGN specifies that a state statute, regulation or other rule of

law may pre-empt the federal law, but only by adopting the
UETA or by passing a law that is consistent with E-SIGN and
essentially technologically neutral.

E-SIGN came into effect after the UETA and the reason behind
this federal intervention is based on the inconsistency of the
states when it came to defining which method could create an
authentic electronic signature. In other words, a federal law was
necessary because state electronic signature and electronic
commerce statutes lacked uniformity.

Canada
Federal

In 2000, the Personal Information Protection and Electronic

Documents Act (PIPEDA) came into effect. It is a federal statute
which, like its American counterpart, provides for functional
equivalency between electronic and paper documents.

Essentially, PIPEDA provides for "the use of electronic

alternatives ... where federal laws contemplate the use of paper
to record or communicate information or transactions."

Of interest, PIPEDA provides for the use of electronic signatures,

the ability to provide electronic documents when an original
document is required21 and the use of electronic documents to
satisfy a requirement under federal law for a document to be in
writing.

Compared to E-SIGN, the Canadian federal legislator went a

step further and envisioned a situation where a "secure
electronic signature" would be required. That is, an electronic
signature resulting from the application of a prescribed
technology or process. Following this tangent, in 2005, the
Secure Electronic Signature Regulations were adopted. It
provided that the term "secure electronic signature" refers to a
digital signature that results from asymmetric cryptography.

Provincial

The primary focus of the provincial legislations is to provide a

single, media-neutral definition of an electronic signature.
However, Quebec's legislation is slightly different. In fact, the
Act to establish a legal framework for information technology
(the "Act") has a more extensive framework.

An electronic signature affixed to a document will benefit from

a presumption of integrity. That is, it will not require any proof
of authenticity if the "integrity of the document is ensured and
the link between the signature and the document was
established at the time of signing and has since been
maintained."

Moreover, the Act goes into some detail and sets out very strict
rules about certificates and biometrics and establishes a
harmonization committee to create technical standards for
Quebec.

The Act is somewhat similar to the federal Secure Electronic

Signature Regulations because it defines standards and
regulates the choice (not to the same extent obviously) of
technologies.

Cryptography

Cryptographic techniques ensure the integrity and

confidentiality of messages exchanged and they also ensure
that none of the parties to the transaction can deny their
participation in the exchange of information.

The main type of cryptography is public- key cryptography.

Essentially, this technology uses two keys which are
intrinsically linked to each other and they are necessary to
decrypt a given message.

In simple terms, there are three main steps in digital signature

technology. First, a message or document is encrypted using a
hash function. A hash function is used to determine whether
the document has been altered and it assures integrity. It is a
one-way encryption. In other words, there is no way to decrypt
the hash. It is only possible to validate it. For example, if a
password is "cat" and the resulting hash is "Tr121as" it is
impossible to decrypt "Tr121as" to "cat" and re- cover the
password. Second, in order to prove that the message was in
fact sent by the legitimate sender, the encrypted message is
sealed by the sender's private key. Finally, upon reception of
the message, the recipient decrypts the message using the
sender's public key and evaluates the hash to verify if the
underlying message/document was compromised.

Here's the step-by-step:

1. The sender sends a message/document which is converted

by a mathematical function called a "hash function." The latter
generates an abstract called a "hash" or "digest."

2. A digest is specifically linked to each message/document, like

a fingerprint. The digest is then encrypted using the private key
of the sender and attached to the message. The product of this
process corresponds to the digital signature.

3. The recipient validates the identity of the sender of the

message by decrypting the digital signature with the public key
of the sender to obtain the digest. Subsequently, the
message/document passes through the hash function a second
time and if both codes are identical (digest sent versus digest
received) then the sender is authenticated and the
message/document is upright. If along the way, the message
was changed (by someone malicious) then the digest would
have been different, and the validation process of the digest
would have failed.

In short, the North American landscape is ripe (and has been

for a while) for disruption. Electronic signature solutions are
increasingly evolved and equal to ink in the eyes of the law. In
fact, many electronic signature solutions go beyond the
legislative and statutory requirements. In a world where
digitization is the main focus, electronic signatures provide a
great opportunity for speed, efficiency and reliability

Conclusion

The new double key encryption system, which is used in

electronic digital signature, will bring, for sure, new
opportunities not only to business but to all spheres of virtual
world & e-government services. This system helps to avoid
forgeries, speeds up document circulation, saves time and
environment, eliminates corruption. Digital signatures could be
used everywhere including intra-corporate electronic document
circulation, communication with state authorities, in tax
reports and internet bank payment system, municipal order
bids, etc.

However, time doesn't stand on the same place, the new types
of signatures will come up soon. The nearest inventions are
digitally encrypted signature (or dynamic signature), which is
based on the handwritten signature but digitalized via writing
process taking into account dynamic signals (pressure &
speed), and biometric signature capturing, the process which
attaches to the e-document some biological data of the
signatory. So, the main question is e-legislation will be as fast
as signature technology?
REFERENCES:

http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file49952.pdf"e-commerce in
Russia" speech by erkki liikanen, member of the European
commission, responsible for enterprise and the information
society http://www.delrus.ec.europa.eu/ru/news_301.htm

http://out-law.com/default.aspx?page=443

http://www.digitalsign.ru/?sec=2 (in Russian)

https://www.tractis.com/contracts/490915454#tc174 - list of
legal acts of different countries

http://www.delrus.ec.europa.eu/ru/news_301.htm

http://review.society.cz/index.php?
Itemid=2&id=88&option=com_content&task=view
http://medialaw.ru/e_pages/laws/project/d2-3.htm Federal law in
English

http://www.epam.ru/index.php?id=22&id2=415&l=eng -

http://www.isaacbowman.com/electronic-signatures-in-global-
and-national-commerce-act-esign

http://www.youdzone.com/signature.html

http://www.bankersonline.com/ebanking/ueta.html