Work Smarter with PDFelement User Guide

About digital ID

Digital ID is the identity of a person/organization, which contains your name, email address, serial number, expiration date, and the name of the company. A digital ID contains two keys, one is a public key (certificate) that is used to encrypt or lock data, and the other is a private key that is used to decrypt or unlock data that is encrypted.

You can distribute the certificate that contains the public key and other identifying information to those who need it to verify your identity, validate your signature, or encrypt a document for you. Only your private key can unlock information that was encrypted using your certificate. For security purposes, make sure to store your digital ID in a safe place.

Sign a PDF

Open a PDF that already has the Signature field and click the "Protect" > "Sign Document" button, then choose your ID to sign.

select an ID

Create a signature

If you do not have an ID yet, click on the "New ID" button, select the "I want to create a new digital ID" option, and then click the "Next" button.

create new digital ID

• New PKCS#12 digital ID file—Stores the digital ID information to a file with the extension .pfx on Windows and .p12 on Mac OS. You can use the files interchangeably across different operating systems.
• Windows Certificate Store—Stores the digital ID to a common location. Other windows applications can also retrieve it.

Validate and clear signature

To validate the signatures, please click the "Protect" > "Manage Signatures" > "Validate All Signatures" button, it will pop up a Signature Validation Status message box which describes the validity of the signature.

To remove the signatures, please click the "Protect" > "Manage Signatures" > "Clear All Signatures" button, which will assist you in removing all of the digital signatures within a PDF file.

validate and clear signature

Sign PDF

Click the "Comment" > "Signature" button, and tap on the "+ Create" button to create your handwritten signature.

sign pdf with handwritten signature

Create handwritten signature

There are three options for adding a handwritten signature, including "Upload", "Draw", and "Type".

• Tap on the "Upload" tab, and click "Choose Image" to upload an image signature saved on your computer. After uploading the image, click the "OK" button.

create signature with images

• You can draw your name directly under the "Draw" tab. Also, you can select the color of the signature as you like.

handwritten signature

• Click the "Type" button, and enter your signature to create your handwritten signature. You can select one of the fonts from the fonts list and choose a color, and then click the "OK" button.

sign pdf file

Sign PDF agreements using PDFelement desktop application

• Launch PDFelement on your computer and simply navigate to the Agreement panel. Double-click on the agreement labeled as "Waiting for me" to initiate the signing process.

signing wait for me

• Click the "Sign" tag to direct you to the signature fields and the other fields which require you to enter any requested information.

signature field

• Select the signature field, then choose your preferred signature method:
• Upload: Import an image of your signature.
• Draw: Draw your signature in the field.
• Type: Input your name, with options for font color and style.

• Click "OK" to apply your signature.

signature options

• At the bottom of the interface, a notification will confirm your agreement to its terms and the Customer Disclosure to do business electronically with the sender. Click the "Click to Sign" button and "Next" to complete the process.

click to sign

Sign PDF agreements using the email link

• Access the agreement from the notification email and click the "Sign the Document" button.

email notification sign document

• Check "I agree with EULA and Privacy to use electronic records and signature," and click "Continue."

agree with policy

• Click the "Signature/Initial" field.

signature initial field

• For first-time users, create a signature using one of three methods:
• Type: Type your name in the field with signature color options.
• Upload: Browse and select an image of your signature.
• Draw: Draw your signature in the field.

• Click "Save." The signature will be applied to the agreement and the added signature is saved securely in Wondershare PDFelement Cloud for further use.

create signature for agreement

• Click "Download", and select an option:
• Only PDF: Download the agreement;
• Download PDF and Audit Report package: Download both the agreement and the audit report in a zipped file;
• Download PDF and Audit Report combined file: Download the agreement and the audit report as a combined PDF file.

download pdf audit report

• Upon all parties signing the agreement, you will receive an email with access to the fully signed document.

notification email all recipients signed