Electronic Signature Interface With Local Checksum Verification

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing electronic document signing processes require transmitting the document to be signed to a signing service, potentially exposing confidential information and compromising its confidentiality, while maintaining compliance with state-of-the-art standards is essential.

Innovation Solution

A method where the document remains confidential by ensuring it is never communicated to the signing service, utilizing a signing interface executed on the signing terminal under the approver's control, with checksum verification and document presentation ensuring authenticity and integrity without external transmission.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the document to be signed is transmitted to the signing service, then the signing process can be completed with verification of document integrity, but the confidentiality of the document is compromised

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedocument integrity verificationVSAvoiddocument confidentiality

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts only the essential verification element (checksum) from the document and transmits it to the signing service, while the document itself remains locally on the user's device. This allows the signing service to verify document integrity through checksum comparison without ever receiving or storing the actual confidential document content.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces a checksum as an intermediary element that mediates between the document and the signing service. The checksum serves as a representative proxy that carries the necessary verification information without exposing the actual document, enabling indirect verification while maintaining confidentiality.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Loss of information

If the document is kept confidential and not transmitted to the signing service, then document confidentiality is preserved, but verification of document integrity becomes difficult

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedocument confidentialityVSAvoiddocument integrity verification

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a cryptographic copy (checksum) of the document's essential verification characteristics. This checksum is a condensed representation that can be transmitted and verified independently, allowing the signing service to perform integrity verification on the copy without accessing the original confidential document.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

3Loss of information

If checksum verification is performed locally without transmitting the document, then document confidentiality is maintained, but compliance with electronic signature standards may be compromised

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedocument confidentialityVSAvoidcompliance with electronic signature standards

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent inverts the traditional signing workflow by performing the document verification step locally on the user's device before transmission, rather than requiring the service provider to verify the document after receipt. This reversal allows confidentiality to be maintained while still achieving verification objectives through local checksum comparison.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

Data Source

PatentEP4657299A1Method for electronic signature preserving privacy of document to be signed to the electronic signature service

Publication Date: 2025.12.03 IGNISIGN SA

Figure 1

AI summary

A method for signing an electronic document comprising the steps: - [50] initiation of a document signature request by a signatory of the signature request and provision, to an electronic signature service, of a first checksum specific to the document to be signed, - [100] request for initiation, by an operating application, of a signature session to be instantiated within a signature interface, - [200] provision to said signature interface by said operating application of the elements enabling the initiation of a signature session, - [300] provision by said signature service to the signature interface of the data relating to the initiation of the signature session including said first checksum, - [400] issuance by said signature interface to said operating application of a request for the provision of said document to be signed or of a URI enabling access to it,- [500] provision by said operating application of the data of said document to be signed or the URI allowing access to said document to be signed, - [600] retrieval by said signing interface of the data of said document to be signed if the information provided in step [500] is a URI. - [700] calculation, by said signing interface, of a checksum of said document to be signed retrieved in step [500] or [600] and comparison, by said signing interface, of said first checksum with said checksum, - [800] presentation to the approver, by said signing interface, of said document to be signed, - [1100] authorization, by said signing interface, of the approval by the approver of said document to be signed provided that the comparison carried out in step [700] shows the identity of the two checksums.