Digital Signature Service for E Governance

Service Details

The vision of Digital Signature Service for E Governance of Government of India is to "make all Government services accessible to the common man in his locality, through Common Service Delivery Outlets and ensure efficiency, transparency, and reliability of such services at affordable costs to realize the basic needs of the common man". The key objective of this vision is to provide e-services - G2B and G2C - in a ubiquitous manner. Digital Signatures provide a viable solution for creating legally enforceable electronic records, closing the gap in going fully paperless by completely eliminating the need to print documents for signing. Digital signatures enable the replacement of slow and expensive paper-based approval processes with fast, low-cost, and fully digital ones. The purpose of a digital signature is the same as that of a handwritten signature. Instead of using pen and paper, a digital signature uses digital keys (public-key cryptography). Like the pen and paper method, a digital signature attaches the identity of the signer to the document and records a binding commitment to the document. However, unlike a handwritten signature, it is considered impossible to forge a digital signature the way a written signature might be. In addition, the digital signature assures that any changes made to the data that has been signed can not go undetected.