Scrive product update: Verification Pages

Scrive prides itself on the quality of the evidence package that is attached to every document signed using Scrive eSign. However, we have found time and time again that users of the service and even courts misunderstand what constitutes the “Evidence Package”. Therefore, we are now making changes to how documents signed with Scrive eSign look. More specifically, we are changing the contents of the so-called verification page(s).

The Old Version

In the current version of Scrive eSign, one or more pages are added to each signed document. These pages contain the transaction ID, the name of the document, information about the signatories and an abridged log of events related to the signing process. It also contains some fine print about the digital seal and how to verify the integrity of the document. Something like this:

There are two problems with this. First, the log of events is abridged, meaning it does not contain all events or even all details about the events listed. Meanwhile, it is interpreted as being the entire log of events. It is even sometimes mistaken for being the Evidence Package. Secondly, it can stretch across many pages if there are many signatories or if the signing process was restarted. This adds to the file size of the document unnecessarily.

The New and Improved Version

The change we are now implementing involves removing the abridged log and improving the visibility of the information about where to find the actual evidence. As an added benefit, file sizes will decrease making downloads faster. The verification page (because it will almost always just be one page) will look more like this:

As you can see, the signatories are still visible (and if eID is used to sign, this will still be very apparent). The previously very fine print is more clearly promoted with larger font size and having been moved from the footer of the page to just below the signatory details. Additionally, the wording will be changed to make it clearer that printed versions of the document are not originals.

These changes will go live in early September 2018.

The Evidence Package

We expect that the new placement and size of “the fine print” will make it more clear how to actually access the evidence package and how to verify the integrity of the document. We have also changed the wording to emphasize on the fact that a hard copy of an e-signed agreement is not an original.

For clarity, the Evidence Package is, as it always has been, viewable in PDF viewers that support the display of attachments. The Firefox web browser is one such reader, but Adobe Acrobat reader naturally can also do this. See the below picture.

In closing, we feel that this change is for the better in several ways, but since it is a very visually apparent change, we wish to inform you about it.

Best Regards,

Scrive Product Team