One of the most important features of Adobe Acrobat Pro is the ability to create a digital signature. Also called a digital ID, it offers the highest level of security and compliance through signer identity authentication and signature encryption.
Digital signatures are often required in highly regulated industries with legal documents that must guarantee the signer’s identity. This differs from an electronic signature, which requires less authentication but is still acceptable for most types of documents. You can create and use both types of signatures in Adobe Acrobat Pro.
How do I create a digital signature in Adobe Acrobat?
While a digital signature needs extra authentication via password protection, Adobe Acrobat Pro makes the process easy. We’ve boiled it down to these five quick steps:
Navigate to preferences
After you’ve opened Adobe Acrobat Pro, select Preferences from the Edit menu at the top of the screen. You’ll then click Signatures from the list of categories to the left.
Add your ID
In the box titled Identities and Trusted Certificates, click More. A small window will appear; click Add ID. In the next window, select A new digital ID I want to create now, then click Next.
Choose where to store your ID
You’ll have two options for storing your digital ID: New PKCS#12 Digital ID File or Windows Certificate Store. A digital ID file can be used on both Windows and Mac OS. By choosing Windows Certificate Store, you will store your digital ID to a common location where it will also be available to other Windows applications.
Create your signature
In the window that appears, enter the information asked, including your name and email address, while leaving the default options for Country/Region, Key Algorithm, and Digital ID. After you click Next, another window will appear. Leave the file name untouched, enter a safe password for your digital signature, and click Finish.
Use your saved signature
You’ll find your digital signature saved in the Digital ID and Trusted Certificate Settings. To use your signature within a document, simply select File > Open > Sign > Place Signature. You’ll then be able to drop the signature in the document wherever you want.
Adobe Acrobat Pro makes digital signatures easy
Adobe Acrobat Pro is used to convert images, PDFs, and other scanned files into more manageable documents that can be edited and signed without a pen or paper. While Acrobat is generally user-friendly, the process for creating digital signatures may be confusing if you’re new to the program. By taking just a few simple steps within the program, you can create a new digital signature for all your most important documents.
Adobe Acrobat Professional guide
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