What Is Considered an Electronic Signature?

An electronic signature is any electronic sound, symbol, or process a person attaches to a record with the intent to sign it. That is the definition federal law uses, and it is deliberately broad: a typed name at the end of an email, a finger scrawled across a delivery tablet, and a click on an “I Accept” button all qualify. For most transactions, an electronic signature carries the same legal weight as ink on paper, provided a few conditions are met.

Forms That Count as an Electronic Signature

Because the legal definition focuses on intent and connection to a document rather than any particular technology, a wide range of everyday actions qualify.

Typing your name into a signature field on a digital form, or at the bottom of an email, is an electronic symbol attached to the record.
Checking a box or clicking “I Accept” on a website is an electronic process you adopt with intent to agree.
Drawing your signature with a stylus or finger on a tablet at a store counter or for a package delivery creates an electronic symbol tied to the transaction.
Signing through a platform like DocuSign or Adobe Sign wraps the same basic act in identity verification and an audit trail.

All of these meet the federal definition of an electronic signature under the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, commonly called the ESIGN Act.¹ A signature or contract cannot be denied legal effect simply because it exists in electronic form.² Most states reinforce the same rule through their own versions of the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, which uses nearly identical language, so the treatment is largely consistent whether you are signing a lease in one state or a vendor agreement in another.

The difference between a typed name in an email and a signature captured on an e-signature platform is not legality. Both are valid. The difference is how easy each one is to defend if someone later disputes it.

Click-Wrap and Browse-Wrap Agreements

Not every online “agreement” holds up equally. Click-wrap agreements, where you actively click an “I Agree” button before proceeding, are generally enforceable because you have taken a clear, affirmative step. Browse-wrap agreements, which claim you accepted terms simply by continuing to use a website, face far more skepticism. The issue is notice: if a reasonable visitor would not have known the terms existed, courts are unlikely to enforce them. Buried links and faint text below a download button have failed on this ground.

When an Electronic Signature Is Legally Binding

Not every electronic mark is automatically enforceable. For an electronic signature to be legally binding, several conditions have to be satisfied.

The person must have intended the electronic action as a signature. An accidental click, or someone else using your device, does not create a binding signature.
All parties must consent to transact electronically. The ESIGN Act does not force anyone to use or accept electronic signatures; agreement can be explicit or shown by the circumstances.³
The signature must be associated with the specific record being signed, not floating free of context. The signing system should create a record linking the two.
The signed record must be reproducible. Every party has to be able to view, store, and print it afterward, or enforceability is at risk.³

Intent is where people get into trouble most often. An email log showing a document was sent to someone is not evidence they signed it. The system has to capture a deliberate action, a click, a typed name, a drawn signature, tied to that specific person.

Consumer Rights When a Business Delivers Records Electronically

When a business is legally required to give you information in writing, like billing statements, policy changes, or required disclosures, the ESIGN Act adds protections before that business can switch to electronic delivery.² These apply to consumer transactions and go beyond a simple opt-in checkbox.

Before you consent, the business has to tell you clearly:

You have the right to receive the information on paper instead.
You can withdraw consent to electronic delivery at any time, and they must spell out any fees or consequences for doing so.
Whether your consent covers just one transaction or an ongoing category of records.
How to get a paper copy after you have consented, and whether there is a fee.
The hardware and software you need to access the electronic records.

Your consent itself has to be given electronically in a way that shows you can actually open the format the business plans to use.² A company cannot send important notices in a file you cannot open and claim you agreed. If technical requirements later change in a way that might block your access, the business has to notify you again and let you withdraw consent without penalty. A business that skips these steps cannot fall back on “the consumer agreed to electronic records.”

Digital Signatures Are a Stronger Subtype

A digital signature is a specific category of electronic signature that uses cryptography to verify the signer’s identity and detect any tampering after the document is signed. The National Institute of Standards and Technology defines it as the result of a cryptographic transformation that verifies who signed, confirms the data has not been altered, and ensures the signer cannot credibly deny having signed.⁴

The practical difference is integrity. A standard electronic signature proves you intended to sign, but it does not inherently prove the document is unchanged since. A digital signature does. It uses a pair of cryptographic keys and a trusted digital certificate; if anyone alters even one character after signing, the signature breaks and the system flags it.

For everyday contracts, a standard electronic signature is legally sufficient. Digital signatures matter more in high-stakes or regulated settings like government procurement, financial transactions, and healthcare records, where document integrity needs to be independently verifiable.

Documents That Still Require a Handwritten Signature

The ESIGN Act carves out several categories where electronic signatures do not apply. These are situations where Congress decided the formality of physical signing outweighs the convenience of going digital.⁵

Wills, codicils, and testamentary trusts. Estate-planning documents follow strict execution rules that predate and override electronic signature laws.
Family law matters, including adoption and divorce proceedings.
Court orders, briefs, pleadings, and other official court documents required in connection with proceedings.
Notices terminating water, heat, or electricity service.
Notices canceling health insurance or life insurance benefits. Annuity cancellations are not excluded.

The Act also excludes most transactions governed by the Uniform Commercial Code, which covers a large portion of commercial activity: negotiable instruments, secured transactions, letters of credit, and more. There is a meaningful carve-out, though. UCC Articles 2 and 2A, which govern the sale and lease of goods, are not excluded.³ An electronic signature on a contract to buy inventory or lease equipment is valid under ESIGN; other UCC-governed documents may follow separate state rules.

Proving a Signature Is Authentic If Someone Challenges It

When a signer later disputes an electronic signature, claiming they never signed or that it was forged, the party relying on the signature generally has to prove it is genuine. This is where the quality of the signing process matters.

A defensible audit trail typically captures the signer’s email address or phone number used for verification, timestamps for each step, the IP address and device information, a cryptographic hash confirming the document was not altered after signing, and a log of the full sequence from invitation to completion. Dedicated e-signature platforms generate these records automatically, and that is a large part of their value beyond simple convenience.

Without that kind of trail, authenticity gets hard to prove. A business that cannot show how the document was sent, how the signer’s identity was verified, or how the signature was captured will struggle to enforce the agreement if someone pushes back. The ESIGN Act does not prescribe a particular format for audit trails, but stronger records make it easier to show the signature was the act of the person it is attributed to.

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 7006 – Definitions
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 7001 – General Rule of Validity
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC Ch. 96 – Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce
4
NIST. Digital Signature Standard (DSS) FIPS 186-4
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 7003 – Specific Exceptions