E-signature: New possibilities
From 2017, companies and public authorities will be able to guarantee the integrity and origin of their digital documents by means of certificates. The corresponding modalities are set out in the total revision of the Ordinance on Electronic Signatures, which the Federal Council recently approved.
With the adoption of the revised Ordinance on the Electronic Signature (VZertES), the Federal Council has defined the conditions under which providers of electronic signatures (providers of certification services) can be recognized and what rights and obligations they have. The revised ordinance is scheduled to come into force on January 1, 2017, at the same time as the new Electronic Signature Act (ZertES), which Parliament already passed on March 18, 2016. Bakom will revise the technical and administrative regulations by then, which will specify and supplement these provisions.
Extension of the scope
The new legal basis for electronic signatures makes it possible to promote a wide range of secure certification services. Thus, thanks to the "regulated" electronic seal, companies can guarantee the integrity and the origin of their electronic documents (e.g. invoices). Public authorities, in turn, can use this seal to certify their Internet publications, such as the texts of the Official Collection or the Federal Gazette, or to sign certain resolutions.
The new regulated certificates can be used as a means of electronic identification, in particular to use online services. They can also be used to encrypt electronic data, thus ensuring its confidentiality during transmission.
Online identification in banking
With the new regulation, the identity of a person who wants to make a digital transaction, such as opening a bank account, can be established in real time using audiovisual communication.
Source: Confederation
