With the CieSign app, the electronic identity card becomes a tool for signing documents directly from your smartphone
The electronic identity card isn’t just for proving who we are or accessing the public administration’s online services. The chip embedded in the document means it can also be used to sign electronic documents via the official CieSign app. This feature may still be little known, but it is useful when we need to sign a declaration, a form or another document without having to print it, sign it by hand and then scan it again.
With CieSign, you can apply an Advanced Electronic Signature (AES). The signature allows the document to be traced back to the signatory and its integrity to be verified. However, it should not be confused with a qualified electronic signature.
What you need
To sign using the CIE, you need just a few things:
- a valid electronic identity card that you have to hand
- the CIE PIN
- a smartphone equipped with NFC technology
- the CieSign app;
- the document to be signed, saved on your phone.
The PIN for the electronic identity card consists of eight digits. The first four are provided when you apply for the card, whilst the other four are found in the letter accompanying the CIE upon delivery.
How to sign with CieSign
After installing and opening the app, the first step is to register your electronic identity card by entering the full PIN and holding the CIE close to your smartphone so that it can be read via NFC.
At this point, you can select the document to be signed and choose the signature format. For a PDF, you can use the PAdES format, which produces a signed PDF; alternatively, the CAdES format is available, which generates a file with a .p7m extension. In the case of a PDF, you can also choose whether to display the signature graphically and where on the page to place it.
To complete the process, the app again requires authorisation via PIN and the card to be scanned using NFC. Once the procedure is complete, the signed document can be saved or shared.
In the video tutorial produced by the digital facilitators, the procedure is shown step by step, from installing CieSign to registering the card, right through to signing the document.
CieID and CieSign: two apps, two different functions
It is also useful to distinguish between the two tools. CieID is mainly used to utilise your digital identity, access online services and manage certain functions of the card. CieSign, on the other hand, is the app dedicated to signing and verifying electronic documents.
The CIE thus remains a tool that combines a physical document with a digital identity: in addition to personal identification, it provides access to online public services and, with CieSign, also allows you to carry out tasks that, until a few years ago, required a pen and paper and additional steps.
Watch the video tutorial: “My Rhome, the electronic signature with the CIE”
