Reconstruction of electronic signatures from eDocument printouts

Governments and public administrations produce documents: laws, orders, permits, notifications, etc. With the transition from traditional paper-based administration to eGovernment that we have seen in the last decade, authentic electronic documents gain importance. Electronic signatures promise to be a tool of choice. However, given the choice of access channels public administrations offer, i.e. electronic or conventional access to services, eDocuments will have to co-exist with traditional paper documents for several years, if not for decades. In this paper we present a solution that visually adds electronic signatures to documents. This is done in a way that allows for verifying the electronic signature from printouts. The purpose is to make the electronic signature resistant against media-breaks and to allow the authority issuing electronic documents, even if the receiver prefers conventional paper documents. We discuss the Austrian practical experience gained with such eSignatures and eDocuments in eGovernment.