Simple Electronic Signature (SES)

What is a simple electronic signature?

A simple electronic signature (SES) is the most basic form of electronic signature: any electronic mark a person uses to show that they agree to a document. Typing your name, drawing your signature on a touchscreen, ticking an “I agree” box or pasting a scanned image of your handwritten signature are all simple electronic signatures.

An SES does not require identity checks or cryptography. In practice, the signer is usually identified only by the email address or user account that received the signing link. That is what makes it fast, and it is also its main weakness: the signature itself proves little about who made it.

The term comes from EU law. The eIDAS Regulation does not use the word “simple”, but its basic definition of an electronic signature in Article 3(10) is exactly what people mean by SES:

Everything that meets this definition but not the stricter requirements for an advanced electronic signature (AES) or a qualified electronic signature (QES) is a simple electronic signature. eIDAS 2.0 (Regulation (EU) 2024/1183, in force since 20 May 2024) left these definitions unchanged.

US law works differently. The ESIGN Act and the state UETA laws have no signature levels at all: any electronic sound, symbol or process attached to a record and adopted with the intent to sign counts as an electronic signature. What most people call an SES is simply an “electronic signature” there.

The three types of electronic signatures

In the EU there are three types of electronic signatures. The SES is the entry level.

For the details on the higher levels, read the guides on advanced electronic signatures and qualified electronic signatures.

Examples of simple electronic signatures

These are the most common electronic signature examples you will come across. All of them are simple electronic signatures.

Typed name

You type your name into a signature field, often rendered in a script font. Most e-signature tools offer this as the quickest option. A typed name at the end of a contract form or in a document also counts, as long as it is meant as a signature (see the case law below).

Drawn signature

You draw your signature with a mouse, trackpad, finger or stylus. This is what you do on a courier’s handheld device when you accept a parcel, on a tablet at a doctor’s reception, or in an e-signature tool on your phone. It looks like your wet signature, but legally it is still an SES.

Click-to-accept checkbox

Every “I agree”, “I accept” or “I confirm” box you tick when you sign up for software, order online or accept terms of service is a simple electronic signature. The recorded click is the evidence that you agreed. This pattern is often called clickwrap.

Scanned signature image

You sign on paper, scan or photograph the signature and insert the image into a PDF or Word document. It keeps the familiar look of a handwritten signature, but anyone who has the image file can paste it into another document. A scanned signature is not a handwritten signature in the legal sense.

Email sign-off

Writing “Agreed, Anna” in an email, or ending a message with your name, can be an electronic signature if you intend it to sign. Courts have treated both typed sign-offs and automatic email signature blocks as signatures (see below).

Signature confirmed by an email link

The signer receives a unique link by email, opens the document and confirms with a click or a typed name. The link ties the signature to an inbox, which is better evidence than a bare checkbox. This is how most e-signature platforms, including fynk, handle simple signatures.

Typical everyday uses for these signatures are online sign-ups and orders, NDAs, quotes and order forms, internal approvals, school permission slips, health questionnaires and parcel deliveries.

Sign any Document in Less than
a Minute.

try free

Is a typed name a legal signature?

Often, yes, but only if you meant it as a signature. Courts look at intent, not at how the name got there:

• Golden Ocean Group v Salgaocar Mining (England, 2012): the Court of Appeal held that a guarantee agreed in a chain of emails was validly signed by a typed name at the end of an email ([2012] EWCA Civ 265).
• Neocleous v Rees (England, 2019): an automatically generated email footer with the sender’s name and details was enough to sign a contract for the sale of land ([2019] EWHC 2462 (Ch)).
• California, 2023: a California Court of Appeal decided that a printed name at the bottom of an email was not, by itself, an electronic signature under the state’s UETA, because there was no evidence the sender intended to sign the document (source).
• South West Terminal v Achter Land (Canada, 2023 and 2024): a thumbs-up emoji sent by text message in reply to a photo of a contract counted as acceptance and signature. The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal upheld the decision in 2024 (source).

The lesson: a typed name can bind you, and a missing intent can undo it. If a document matters, use a process that makes the intent to sign obvious, such as a signature field and a confirmation step. The guide to electronic signature legality covers the requirements country by country.

Is a simple electronic signature legally binding?

Yes. In the EU, Article 25(1) eIDAS states that an electronic signature shall not be denied legal effect and admissibility as evidence in legal proceedings solely on the grounds that it is in an electronic form or that it does not meet the requirements for qualified electronic signatures. A contract that needs no particular form is therefore just as valid when it is signed with an SES.

In the US, the ESIGN Act and UETA (adopted in 49 states plus DC; New York has its own law) say a signature or contract may not be denied legal effect solely because it is electronic. Most other countries have similar rules.

What an SES does not give you is strong evidence. If the other side later says “I never signed that”, you have to prove who signed. With an email-only SES, your evidence is the signing record: which address received the link, when the document was opened and signed, and from which IP address. That is why a good audit trail matters more for SES than for any other level.

When is a simple electronic signature not enough?

An SES is valid, but it does not satisfy a legal requirement for written form. Whenever a law requires a handwritten signature, you need a QES (where the law allows the electronic form) or ink on paper.

Germany is a good example of how this works:

• Written form (Schriftform, §126 BGB): requires a handwritten signature. A QES can replace it (§126a BGB) unless the law excludes the electronic form. Written form applies, for example, to the fixed term in an employment contract (§14(4) TzBfG) and to consumer credit agreements (§492 BGB). An SES does not meet it. In 2022 the LAG Berlin-Brandenburg held that a fixed-term contract signed with a scanned signature did not meet the written form, so the fixed term was invalid (23 Sa 1133/21).
• Excluded from the electronic form: termination of an employment contract (§623 BGB), guarantees given by non-merchants (§766 BGB) and wills, which must be handwritten (§2247 BGB). Here even a QES is not enough.
• Text form (Textform, §126b BGB): only needs a readable declaration on a durable medium that names the person. An email, a scan or an SES meets it. Since the Bureaucracy Relief Act IV took effect on 1 January 2025, text form is enough for the written statement of essential employment terms under the Nachweisgesetz (except in sectors such as construction and hospitality) and for commercial leases longer than one year.

Across the EU, national law decides which documents need which form. Wills, notarial deeds, real-estate transfers and many family law acts usually cannot be signed with an SES. For high-value contracts, or when you expect a dispute, choose an AES or QES even where the law does not require one, because they make the signer’s identity much easier to prove.

Pros and cons of simple electronic signatures

Pros

• Fast: signers need no ID check, no app and no account. Most documents are signed in minutes.
• Easy for the signer: works on any device with a browser.
• Cheap: no paper, printing or postage, and no per-signature fees for identity checks.
• Widely accepted: valid for most everyday contracts in the EU, the US and elsewhere.

Cons

• Weak proof of identity: an email address shows who received the link, not who clicked it.
• Easy to copy: a scanned or drawn signature image can be reused in another document, which is a common route to signature forgery.
• Not enough for written form: documents that legally need a handwritten signature require a QES or paper.

How to create a simple electronic signature

You can create an SES with tools you already have, or use an e-signature platform that handles sending, signing and the audit trail for you.

In Microsoft Word

In Word for Microsoft 365 (Windows and Mac), open the Draw tab, pick a pen, colour and thickness, and draw your signature with a mouse, trackpad or stylus. Then switch back to selecting so you stop drawing.

Word also offers a signature line and certificate-based digital signatures. The guide on how to sign a Word document walks through every option.

In Google Docs

Google Docs has a native eSignature feature on eligible Google Workspace plans (Workspace Individual, Business Standard and Plus, Enterprise and Education Plus, as of October 2026). Open Tools > eSignature, drag signature, name and date fields into the document, then click Request signature and enter the signers’ email addresses. You can add up to 10 signers per request (Google help). The result is a signed PDF, and it is a simple electronic signature.

Without an eligible plan, use Insert > Drawing > + New, draw your signature with the scribble tool (or type your name in a text box with a handwriting font) and click Save and close.

More methods are in the guide on how to sign a Google Doc.

In a PDF

Most PDF readers, including Adobe Acrobat Reader and Preview on a Mac, let you draw, type or insert an image of your signature. See how to sign a PDF for the steps on every device.

With a scanned image

Sign a sheet of white paper, scan or photograph it, crop it and save it as a PNG or JPEG. You can then insert it into any document. Images are awkward to position, can look blurry at low resolution and are easy to misuse, so treat this as a fallback.

With an e-signature platform like fynk

An e-signature platform does more than place a signature: it sends the document, collects every signature and records the whole process. In fynk it works like this:

1. Upload the document you need signed. Word, PDF and other common formats can be uploaded directly, with no conversion needed.
2. Place a signature block wherever each person should sign.
3. Add the signatories with their email addresses, including yourself if you sign too.
4. Choose the signature type for the document (simple, advanced or qualified) and send it.

Each signer receives an email with a link that leads straight to the document. Signers do not need a fynk account. They can sign in one of three ways.

Draw: recreate your handwritten signature with a mouse or touchpad, or with your finger or a stylus on a phone or tablet. You can clear the field and start again at any time.

Type: type your name and fynk renders it in a script font. This is the quickest option.

Upload: upload an image of your signature or take a photo of it with your camera.

How to make a simple electronic signature more robust

The weak spot of an SES is proof. These measures make it much harder to dispute:

• Keep an audit trail. Record who received the signing link, when the document was opened and signed, and from which IP address and device. In fynk the audit trail does this automatically for every document.
• Verify the signer’s email. Send the signing link to a known address instead of letting anyone sign on a public page. The link ties the signature to an inbox.
• Add a second factor. A one-time code sent to the signer’s phone confirms that the person also controls that number. In fynk, signing with a code sent by SMS is an advanced electronic signature, so this step moves you up a level.
• Make the document tamper-evident. Lock the content once signing starts and keep the signed file with a record of its integrity, so any later change is detectable. In fynk a document cannot be edited once it is out for signature.
• Make the intent explicit. Use a clear signature field and a confirmation step rather than relying on a name at the bottom of an email.

Which signature level should you use?

A simple electronic signature is the right choice for most day-to-day documents: it is quick, legally valid and easy for everyone involved. Move up to AES or QES when the law asks for written form or when you need to prove beyond doubt who signed. In fynk you choose the signature type per document, so you do not need a second tool for the contracts that need more.

Want to sign a document now? Try fynk , no credit card required.

Frequently asked questions

• Is a simple electronic signature legally binding?

  Yes. Under Article 25(1) of the EU eIDAS Regulation, an electronic signature cannot be denied legal effect or admissibility as evidence just because it is electronic or not qualified. In the US, ESIGN and UETA give electronic signatures the same effect as handwritten ones for most contracts. An SES is not enough where the law requires written form, for example for some employment and consumer credit contracts in Germany.

• Is a typed name a valid electronic signature?

  Usually yes, if you typed it with the intent to sign. English courts accepted a typed name at the end of an email (Golden Ocean, 2012) and an automatic email footer (Neocleous v Rees, 2019) as signatures. A California appeals court decided in 2023 that a printed name in an email was not a signature because there was no intent to sign.

• What is an example of a simple electronic signature?

  Typical examples are a typed name in a signature field, a signature drawn on a touchscreen, a ticked I agree box on a website, a scanned image of a handwritten signature, a name at the end of an email and a signature confirmed through a link sent by email.

• What are the three types of electronic signatures?

  EU law defines three types: the simple electronic signature (SES), the advanced electronic signature (AES), which must be uniquely linked to and identify the signer and reveal later changes, and the qualified electronic signature (QES), which is created with a qualified certificate and device and has the same effect as a handwritten signature.

• How is a simple electronic signature different from an advanced electronic signature?

  An SES has no requirements beyond being used to sign, so it can be a typed name or a click. An AES must be uniquely linked to the signer, identify them, be created with data under their sole control and make any later change to the document detectable. That makes an AES far easier to prove in a dispute.

• How can I make my simple electronic signature more secure?

  Send signing links to verified email addresses, keep a complete audit trail of who opened and signed the document and when, lock the document once signing starts and, for important contracts, add a one-time code sent to the signer's phone, which turns the signature into an advanced one.