HOW TO ELECTRONICALLY SIGN A DOCUMENT

1. FOR ALL

2. FOR IT SPECIALISTS

2.1. The necessary technical provision

2.2. Installation and configuration

3. FOR USERS OF E-SIGNATURE CARD

3.1. Electronic signing of documents by means of e-Signer

3.2. Electronic signing of documents by means of other applications

4. INFORMATION AND SUPPORT


1. FOR ALL

For all willing to sign documents electronically by means of the Latvian Post E-ME certificates, it is essentially to know that:

  1. You need the E-ME e-signature card with certificates. E-signature cards with certificates may be obtained in the Latvian Post postal sections. A list of sections is available in the E-ME homepage.
  2. To use the e-signature card, in your computer built in should be or attachable to your computer should be the card reader and card reader drivers. You can obtain card readers in the Latvian Post postal sections or in other IT commodities sales outlets. Latvian Post has checked up 2 (two) type card readers and information on them is available in /lv/atbalsts/lasitaji.html.
  3. Apart from the e-signature card and the card reader needed are Windows computer, internet and software, which can be for free of charge downloaded in Certification services E-ME internet site www.e-me.lv.
  4. With the provision sufficient for signing of electronic documents it is enough also to electronically verify documents. If you sign documents electronically, then you without any problems may also verify electronically signed documents.
  5. By the E-ME signing and verification application e-Signer, electronically signed documents have the expansion *.edoc.
  6. E-ME *.edoc document is a container wherein there may be one or several sites and one or several electronic signatures with or without time stamps.

2. FOR IT SPECIALISTS

Sections 2.1 and 2.2 are meant for IT specialists. Therein described are once to-be-performed operations to prepare the devices and computer for work with the electronic signature and electronic documents.

If you are a private person or you have necessary special knowledge or rights in order to install the software on your computer and configure it, then you may perform the installation by your own efforts, but it is recommended to entrust the installation and configuration works to an IT specialist. It is the work of your IT administrator.

2.1. The necessary technical provision

To sign a document electronically, needed is the provision as follows:

  1. Computer with Microsoft Windows Professional 2000 SP4 or Microsoft Windows Professional XP SP2, or Microsoft Windows XP Home SP2 operation system;
  2. Internet connection;
  3. E-signature card and card drivers. You may for free of charge download the card drivers’ installation from the following internet file /lv/atbalsts/programmatura/driveri.html.
  4. Card driver attached to the computer and card reader drivers. Card reader drivers are available on the computer or they may be downloaded from internet, depending upon the fact what the card reader is. Card reader drivers checked up by Latvian Post are available in http://www.scmmicro.com/support/pcs_product_drivers.html and accordingly in http://support.gemplus.com/gemdownload/readers/drivers.aspx?prodid=13 .
  5. Software .net framework 2, which should be installed on the computer (software may be for free of charge downloaded from the following internet site http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=0856eacb-4362-4b0d-8edd-aab15c5e04f5&displaylang=en), it is comparatively small and usually does not need additional computer resources);
  6. Signing and verification application e-Signer should be installed on the computer (software may be for free of charge downloaded in E-ME internet site https://www.eme.lv/csp-web/eDocPublish.aspx; to note, the software version should be at least 1.0.).

2.2. Installation and configuration

Installation of card reader drivers and card drivers is simple. They are downloaded from internet and installed by standard Microsoft installation means. After installation of the card driver, reinstalled should be the computer.

How to correctly install, configure and check up the computer is described in the installation and configuration description, which may be downloaded or opened in E-ME internet site /lv/atbalsts/instal_konfig/index.html.

If you fail to perform installation and configuration works, then call your IT specialist to help you.

3. FOR E-SIGNATURE CARD USERS

Sections 3.1 and 3.2 are meant for e-signature card users, who need to sign documents electronically, to affix the time stamps or to receive, read and verify documents, signatures and time stamps.

When the necessary provision (e-signature card, card reader, computer, internet, software) is prepared for work, we can perform signing of electronic documents.

3.1. Electronic signing of documents by means of e-Signer

  1. To sign documents electronically by means of the E-ME application e-Signer, you should insert the card into the card reader, actuate the e-Signer application and should act in accordance with the e-Signer user’s documentation.
  2. The e-Signer documentation is available as a Help system, which may be called from the e-Signer application by the key <F1> or menu Palīgs->Palīdzības sistēma (Help->Help system).

Here you can find a short video training how to electronically sign documents by means of the e-Signer application.

3.2. Electronic signing of documents by means of other applications

  1. By E-ME certificates it is possible to sign documents also by means of other applications, for example, Microsoft Word and Microsoft Outlook. A description how to do it is found in E-ME /lv/dokumenti/standarta_riki.doc
  2. Take into account that by Microsoft Word and Microsoft Outlook the time stamp cannot be affixed, so if you need the time stamp, then use the e-Signer application.

4. INFORMATION AND SUPPORT

  1. Your computer technical problems should be signed by your IT administrator.
  2. If you have any problems with the e-signature card to the e-Signer program operation, then look for necessary information in the E-ME mājas lapā. E-ME homepage. If you cannot manage to settle the problem by help of www.e-me.lv then the E-ME Help Service will help you, by calling to the phone 7018989 or by writing to e-mail help@e-me.lv.