How to make an electronic signature (that actually holds up)
An electronic signature is any electronic mark that shows you intend to agree to a document. Making one is easy. The real question is whether it will hold up if someone later challenges it — and that comes down to how it is captured and recorded, not how it looks.
Three ways to make an electronic signature
You have three practical options, and all are widely accepted.
- Draw it. Use a trackpad, mouse, or your finger on a touchscreen to sign your name. This gives the closest feel to a handwritten signature.
- Type it. Enter your name and let the tool render it in a signature style. Fast, legible, and perfectly valid.
- Upload it. Take a photo or scan of your handwritten signature and use it as an image.
Any of these can be your signature. But the mark itself is only one part of what makes it count.
What actually makes an electronic signature valid
Under frameworks like the EU's eIDAS regulation and the US ESIGN Act and UETA, a valid electronic signature generally needs three things:
- Intent to sign. The signer meant to sign, rather than clicking by accident.
- Consent to do business electronically. Both parties agreed to sign this way.
- A record of the signature. The signature is associated with the document and can be retained and reproduced.
Signet is aligned with all three of these frameworks, so agreements signed through it meet the recognised bar for a valid electronic signature. If you want the deeper picture, we cover it in are electronic signatures legally binding.
A signature you can create is easy. A signature you can prove is what wins arguments.
From valid to defensible
Valid and defensible are not the same thing. A signature can be valid in principle and still be hard to defend if you cannot show the circumstances around it. Defensibility is about evidence.
This is where a proper signing platform earns its place. Every document completed through Signet carries:
- A tamper-evident audit trail recording each action — opened, viewed, signed — with timestamps and signer detail.
- A certificate of completion binding the signers, the timestamps, and the exact document together.
- Independent, public verification, so anyone can confirm the record is genuine and unaltered.
If the document is changed after signing, verification fails. That is the mechanism that turns a signature from "looks right" into "provably right".
How to make one with Signet
The flow is simple, and you can see it end to end on how it works.
- Upload your document and place signature, date, and any other fields.
- Send a secure link. Your signer draws, types, or uploads their signature in the browser — no login, no app, no password.
- On completion, everyone gets the signed document, its certificate, and the audit trail.
Your documents are encrypted at rest, held with UK and EU data residency, and never used to train AI. You can read more on our security page.
The short version
Making an electronic signature is a case of draw, type, or upload. Making one that holds up is about intent, consent, and a record you can verify later. Choose a tool that captures all of that by default, and you never have to think about it again.
Signet is in private beta, request early access and send your first sealed agreement free.