Ensure the origin of documents 
issued by your organisation

Definition of electronic seal: an electronic seal is a digital security mechanism that guarantees the authenticity (origin) and integrity of a document issued by a legal entity, unlike an electronic signature, which binds an individual, or natural person.

There are three levels of electronic seal: simple, advanced, and qualified.

The concept of an electronic seal covers three distinct levels:

• Simple electronic seal: the basic level, relying on a simple identification procedure, sufficient for securing less sensitive documents.
• Advanced electronic seal: requires more rigorous identification, providing better traceability and enhanced security, recommended for important documents such as contracts or agreements.
• Qualified electronic seal: the highest level, based on strong identification and cryptography; it carries a presumption of legal reliability and is ideal for sensitive or regulated documents (such as electronic invoicing).

eIDAS qualification means that the electronic seal complies with the highest level of digital security defined by the European Union. In practice, this means it is issued by a certified provider (a Qualified Trust Service Provider – QTSP) and ensures the document is authentic and has not been altered.

With a qualified electronic seal, businesses benefit from legal recognition across the EU: the sealed document has the same value as a signed paper original and cannot be refused as evidence.

Both the electronic signature and the electronic seal ensure the authenticity and integrity of a digital document, but they apply to different actors:

• Electronic signature: used by natural persons. It directly binds an individual (an employee, an executive, or a private person) who signs a document, thereby expressing their consent.
• Electronic seal: used by legal entities (companies, public authorities, associations). It authenticates a document as originating from the organisation itself, without binding any specific individual.

In short: an electronic signature binds an individual, while an electronic seal binds an organisation.

An electronic seal is based on asymmetric cryptography and follows several steps:

• Generation of the digital fingerprint (hash): the document is transformed into a unique digital fingerprint using a hashing algorithm. This fingerprint changes if even a single byte is modified, thereby ensuring document integrity.
• Application of the seal: the fingerprint is then encrypted with a private key held by the organisation (via a certificate issued by a Trust Service Provider). This establishes the link between the document and the issuing legal entity, ensuring authenticity.
• Verification: anyone receiving the document can use the corresponding public key to decrypt the fingerprint and verify it matches the received document. If they correspond, the document is both authentic and intact.

In summary, an electronic seal functions as a digital stamp based on cryptography: it certifies that the document originates from an identified organisation (authenticity) and has not been altered since issuance (integrity).

To obtain a qualified electronic certificate, an organisation must go through a Qualified Trust Service Provider (QTSP) accredited by the relevant authorities (in France, ANSSI). These providers issue a qualified electronic certificate, which forms the basis of the seal and guarantees compliance with the eIDAS Regulation.

The process generally involves three steps:

• Selecting the trust service provider: choosing a recognised QTSP authorised to issue qualified certificates.
• Organisation verification: the provider validates the legal identity of the organisation to ensure the authenticity of the certificate.
• Issuance of the qualified electronic certificate: once delivered, the organisation can apply qualified electronic seals to its documents, ensuring authenticity, integrity, and full legal validity across the EU.

An electronic seal can be applied to any document requiring authenticity, integrity, and legal validity. It is particularly suited to:

• Administrative documents: certificates, reports, internal agreements, etc.
• Legal documents: contracts, articles of association, minutes, legal certificates.
• Financial and accounting documents: declarations, balance sheets, electronic invoices, and any documents subject to regulatory archiving.

In practice, the electronic seal secures any document issued by an organisation, guaranteeing that it originates from the issuing legal entity and has not been tampered with.

Electronic seals offer several key advantages:

• Security: ensuring the authenticity and integrity of documents, protecting against forgery or unauthorised modifications.
• Traceability: each seal application creates a timestamped record, enabling tracking of the history and validity of documents.
• Time efficiency: simplifying and accelerating document management by replacing slow, paper-based procedures.
• Legal value: documents sealed with an eIDAS-qualified electronic seal enjoy EU-wide legal recognition, with a presumption of reliability in court.

Yes. An electronic seal, when qualified and compliant with the eIDAS Regulation, has legally recognised validity across the European Union. A qualified electronic seal guarantees that the document originates from an identified organisation and has not been altered.

In practice, a document sealed with a qualified electronic seal has the same legal value as an official paper document and may be used as evidence before courts in all EU countries.

Electronic seals can be integrated directly into your IT systems via our API, allowing documents to be securely sealed without disrupting existing workflows.

To test and validate integration, you can also use our sandbox environment, which simulates the sealing process on your documents before going live. This approach ensures fast, reliable, and eIDAS-compliant adoption while optimising operational processes.

To issue a qualified electronic certificate, a trust service provider must comply with strict requirements defined by the eIDAS Regulation and, in France, be certified by ANSSI.

These include:

• Mastery of advanced cryptographic mechanisms to guarantee authenticity and integrity of certificates.
• Implementation of rigorous security procedures to protect keys and issued certificates.
• Compliance with regulatory standards and regular audits of systems to ensure the legal reliability of electronic certificates.