Posted by Mary_in_VA on 4/18/06 9:52am
Msg #114158

E-signings

Is anyone out there doing these yet? I've done a Google search and not found much good information and, yes, I've searched this forum.

Can anyone tell me the basic process, equipment required, where good, reliable training might be had, etc.?

I've done thousands of signings over my 20+ years closing loans, but never an e-signing.

Thanks!

Reply by lulu on 4/18/06 11:20am
Msg #114173

The only ones doing E-notarization at this time are 3 or 5 counties in PA. It is on a 6 month pilot program. There are other states setting up for it but I think they are waiting to see how it goes in PA. I can send you a powerpoint that shows it all if you post me your email or tell me how else to contact you. It's easier than trying to explain it in here.
I don't know if there is any training available for it yet.

Reply by Mary_in_VA on 4/18/06 11:36am
Msg #114183

Sorry, Lulu! I hadn't added link to my profile...and neither did you! My e-mail address is [e-mail address]. I would greatly appreciate your sending me that PowerPoint presentation: at least I'd have somewhere to start!

THANKS!

Reply by Regal/NC on 4/18/06 11:51am
Msg #114189

LuLu, please send me a copy!!

Lulu,

Please email me a copy of the e-notarization presentation.

[e-mail address]

Thanks!!

Reply by lulu on 4/18/06 12:33pm
Msg #114207

Re: LuLu, please send me a copy!!

Check your email.

Reply by MsRobboPA on 4/18/06 3:18pm
Msg #114266

E notarizations

Lulu could you please send me a copy. My email is [e-mail address] Thanks.

Reply by dickb/wi on 4/18/06 1:05pm
Msg #114222

lulu i would appreciate it if you coud send me acopy....tia.....dick

Reply by Marlene/USNA on 4/18/06 1:35pm
Msg #114237

Hi, Lulu, could you please send me a copy of your presentation? Thank you!

[e-mail address]

Reply by Measie on 4/18/06 3:35pm
Msg #114271

Please send me a copy. Thanks.

[e-mail address]

Reply by Steve Kenton Mobile Notary on 4/18/06 3:47pm
Msg #114274

Could you send a copy my way please? [e-mail address] looks like it would cost about 400.00 for the equipment and at this time I have seen two different signature pads.

Reply by Margaret_FL on 4/18/06 4:23pm
Msg #114283

I bought the Enjoa system from the NNA, I paid like $565 for the system. Looks like I will be selling it
on Ebay. What a waste of money, I believed it would be happening real soon or I would not have
invested in the system

Reply by CATWOMAN/PA on 4/18/06 8:10pm
Msg #114344

Would you please e-mail me a copy of the powerpoint,also? Thanks.

Reply by Gerry_VT on 4/18/06 12:11pm
Msg #114198

Perhaps a year ago I posted on my web site what an e-signing would look like (http://users.adelphia.net/~ashtongj), if you didn't have a complete system to help understand what is going on. No one seemed able to make heads or tails of what I posted, which just goes to show that only people with an extensive background in computers can do digital signatures just using the bits and pieces available in Microsoft Office or Adobe Acrobat.

The problem is there is no widely adopted overall system, and there are a few different companies pushing their incompatible systems, much like the days of Betamax vs. VHS. I think the only reasonable choice for a notary is either to wait until the dust settles, or to identify an opportunity that will provide an immediate profit in a short time, even if the system ultimately becomes an orphan. I think that kind of opportunity only exists in a few counties in the country, if it exists at all.

Reply by Ilona_OH on 4/18/06 2:40pm
Msg #114255

May I please? Thanks! n/m

Reply by VA_Notary on 4/18/06 4:36pm
Msg #114292

Me too please? Thanks! n/m

Reply by whitesatin on 4/18/06 5:28pm
Msg #114304

Re: Me too please? Thanks!

lulu,
Maybe you can start a new business charging people for forwarding your info! j/k

Reply by lulu on 4/18/06 11:26pm
Msg #114372

Re: Me too please? Thanks!

Reply by lulu on 4/18/06 11:35pm
Msg #114374

Gerry,
I agree this is an item to 'wait til the dust settles'. It's nothing one wants to go out and jump in with a major investment at this point. Many say there has been talk of e-not for years. I did go to your link but I didn't find a file there about e-signing or e-notarization. Can you help me out here? I'd like to see what you had.

Reply by Gerry_VT on 4/19/06 9:55am
Msg #114434

The full link is http://users.adelphia.net/~ashtongj/detached-ack.doc

That is a Microsoft Word document, and it illustrates two things about an e-signing. First, the document itself has a digital signature. To see it, save the document, open it in Word, click on Tools in the menu bar, and pick Options... from the list. A menu will appear, click on the Security tab, then click on the Digital Signatures button. A new menu will appear showing the digital signature.

The file also illustrates what a notary might do if a client comes with a computer file that is already digitally signed, and the client wants to acknowledge the document. Any alteration to the file would invalidate the existing signature, so typing an acknowledgement certificate to the end of the document won't work. So you would need the digital equivalent of a loose certificate. The certificate I created describes the digitally signed file in such detail that there can be no doubt about which file it is that is being acknowledged. This is more than equivalent to stapling a loose certificate to a document.

The problem is that this procedure is not part of any commonplace process, so there are probably fewer than 100,000 people in the country who would understand what I'm up to.

Reply by lulu on 4/19/06 12:13pm
Msg #114481

I followed your instructions to the point of digital signature but it won't allow me to go to the digital signature screen. If someone wanted you to digitally notarize an item they would not be able to have signed it other than in your presence at which time you would e-not. Yes once the doc is signed it's locked and any future changes are logged somehow in the background of the file. That is my understanding.

Reply by Gerry_VT on 4/19/06 4:13pm
Msg #114599

Lulu wrote "I followed your instructions to the point of digital signature but it won't allow me to go to the digital signature screen." When you try to view a Word document on a web site, a window pops up saying "Do you want to open or save this file?" If you answer "Open" you will see the file but the Digital Signature box will be greyed out and won't work. On the other hand, if you answer "Save", put it someplace on your computer, and then open it, the Digital Signature box will work.

Lulu also wrote "If someone wanted you to digitally notarize an item they would not be able to have signed it other than in your presence...." It does not come up often, but you probably know that the signer does not have to sign in front of the notary; the signer only has to appear in front of the notary, point at the document, and say "I acknowledge that" or words to that effect. This might come up if both the notary and the signer used desk top computers. The signer signs at home, puts the document on a thumb drive, drives over to the notary, and acknowledges. The notary signs the "loose certificate" on his desktop.

Another scenario is the signer uses one brand of software (Adobe Acrobat, say) and the notary uses another (Microsoft Word, for example). Even if the computers were in the same room, it wouldn't be possible to apply two signatures, becase no smart computer user would put his/her private encryption key on another person's computer.

Finally lulu wrote "Yes once the doc is signed it's locked and any future changes are logged somehow in the background of the file." I was curious to see exactly what would happen, so I tried it. First, I found I could change the name of the file and the signature was still valid. Then I used Word to change one letter and tried to leave Word. Word asked me if I wanted to save the changes, and warned that all digital signatures would be removed if I saved the changed document. I tried using some other programs to change the document without using Word; when I did that Word wouldn't read the document at all.