A customer claims their signed version includes different obligations and has escalated to ops. I have the customer's …
Open the PDF document containing the digital signature you want to validate.
Locate the signature field or signature panel in the document.
Click directly on the digital signature or open the signature panel and select the signature you wish to validate.
In the signature details popup, click Signature Properties.
In the Signature Properties dialog, click Show Certificate to review certificate details if needed.
Close the certificate window, then click Validate Signature in the Signature Properties dialog.
Best practiceIf the signature status shows as 'Unknown' or 'Not Valid', check if the signer's certificate needs to be added to your list of trusted identities.
Review the validation result displayed in the Signature Properties dialog.
You can view detailed information about the signature's validity and certificate by clicking on the signature and opening Signature Properties.
This runs in the Acrobat app - there is no separate API for this task.
A valid digital signature means that Acrobat has confirmed two main things: first, the identity of the person who signed the document is real and trusted, based on their digital certificate. Second, it confirms that the document has not been changed or tampered with since it was signed. This ensures the integrity and authenticity of the document.
If a digital signature shows an unknown signer, it means Acrobat cannot confirm the signer's identity or trust their certificate. You should be cautious. You can try to verify the certificate information or manage trusted identities in Acrobat to add the signer's certificate as trusted if you know them. If not, consider the signature unverified and potentially unreliable.
It's important to validate digital signatures to ensure the document's authenticity and integrity, confirming who signed it and that it hasn't changed. LTV stands for Long-Term Validation. It's crucial because it adds verification information to the signature itself, making it self-validating over a long time. This means even if the signer's certificate expires later, the signature's validity at the time of signing can still be proven, which is vital for legal and archival purposes.
| Action | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Verifying a signature | Checks if a specific signature on a document is valid, authentic, and if the document has changed. |
| Managing trusted identities | Allows you to add or remove digital certificates from a list of trusted signers. This helps Acrobat know which signers to trust automatically in the future. |