Section 15 of ITA, 2000 : Section 15: Secure Electronic Signature

Bare Act

15 Secure electronic signature - An electronic signature shall be deemed to be a secure electronic signature if:

1. The signature creation data, at the time of affixing signature, was under the exclusive control of signatory and no other person; and
2. The signature creation data was stored and affixed in such exclusive manner as may be prescribed.

Explanation - In case of digital signature, the "signature creation data" means the private key of the subscriber.

Simplified Act

What is a secure electronic signature?

A secure electronic signature is one that meets the following two conditions:

1. Only the person signing had control over the data used to create the signature at the time it was used; no one else could access it.
2. The data used to create the signature was stored and used in a specific way...

Explanation using Example

Let's consider a hypothetical scenario to understand the application of Section 15 of The Information Technology Act, 2000.

Imagine Mr. John, a bank manager, is preparing a loan agreement for a client, Mr. Smith. To finalize the agreement, Mr. John needs to put his electronic signature on the document. According to Section 15:

1. Mr. John, while affixing his signature, must ensure that the signature creation data (his private key in case of a digital signature) is under his exclusive control. This implies that no other person, including his colleagues or Mr. Smith, should have access to his private key at the time of signing.
2. Moreover, the way ...