APEGBC is pleased to announce that the necessary arrangements and software are now in place so that members and licensees who currently have signing and sealing permission under the Engineers and Geoscientists Act can digitally sign and apply an electronic version of their seal to their professional documents so that the documents can be transmitted electronically in a secure fashion.

What is the Digital Signature and Electronic Seal Technology
How the Digital Signature and Electronic Seal Technology Works
What Do I Need to Know About It
How to Obtain the Digital Signature and Electronic Seal Technology
Pricing Structure
Background

What is the Digital Signature and Electronic Seal Technology

The digital signature and electronic sealing technology will allow APEGBC members to electronically preserve, transmit and sign electronic documents, files or emails to clients, owners, municipalities and others, thus increasing the efficiency of business processes and service to clients.

How the Digital Signature and Electronic Seal Technology Works

Using the package, the professional or staff under their supervision first creates the .pdf document using the .pdf printer tool proved in the toolkit.  Then using custom software also provided in the toolkit, they indicate where to place a digital image of their seal, signature and date (this can be on just a signature page, or it can be on the same location on multiple pages).  The professional then only needs to click on the “sign” button and is immediately challenged by the password used to unlock his digital certificate or private key.  This method of “signing” an electronic document, using asymmetrical cryptography also known as public key encryption, is a widely used method of transmitting information electronically in a secure form.  The software creates a .pdf document that has a digital image of the seal and signature, and is properly dated.  Using any recent version of Adobe Reader, anyone receiving the electronically transmitted document can consult the digital signature now linked to the document (just like viewing a handwritten signature on a paper document) and also validate that the signature was applied by an authorized professional.  This is confirmed by a green check mark that will appear once the receipt’s Adobe Reader has been configured to validate the digital signature.

What Do I Need to Know About It

The legality of digitally signing a document both under Canadian federal law and BC Provincial law is well established as long as a proper Public Key Infrastructure is used.  There are laws both provincially and federally that indicate that anywhere a law says a document must be signed, a digital signature that can be accepted provided that it can be uniquely identified to an individual and does not permit alteration of the document after it is signed.
It is important to understand that APEGBC will just be providing the infrastructure for use of electronic seals and digital signatures. The Association will not mandate anyone to either electronically seal documents, or to accept electronically sealed documents.  However, if a member chooses to electronically send documents prepared in that members’ professional capacity, in accordance with the Engineers and Geoscientists Act, those prepared documents must be sealed, and only using the method approved by APEGBC (as the owner of all seals issued in British Columbia) for sealing electronic documents.  APEGBC has received confirmation from various municipalities that they will accept digitally signed and sealed Letters of Assurance, forms, and other documents with the exception of design drawings submitted for building permitting purposes.  Currently municipalities do not have the capability to review and process drawings which have been submitted electronically.

How to Obtain the Digital Signature and Electronic Seal Technology

The following process will allow members in good standing to benefit from this technology:

• Fill in a request form;
• Sign the request form in the presence of another APEGBC member in good standing, Notary, Lawyer or APEGBC Authorized Staff Member;
• Forward your request form, required documentation and payment information to APEGBC.

Following the receipt of the request, APEGBC will verify the membership status of both the member making the request and the individual who has witnessed the signature, and will grant Notarius permission to issue an official APEGBC digital signature and electronic seal.

Once you have received the Digital Signature technology from Notarius, you are permitted to produce an image of your APEGBC issued stamp.

Members interested in purchasing the digital signature and electronic seal technology may do so by visiting the APEGBC section on the Notarius website (http://www.notarius.com/en/clientele_APEGBC.html) and following the directions set out in the application sections of the site or by contacting Lina Bowser at (604) 412-4862 or by e-mail at lbowser@apeg.bc.ca.

Pricing Structure

Pricing for Members
$140 Subscription Fee (one time fee) inclusive of shipping and handling
$185 Annual Renewal fee
Total: $325 (plus applicable taxes)

Background

As has been reported in the September/October 2007 (http://www.apeg.bc.ca/resource/innovation/archive/2007/2007septoct.pdf) and the March/April 2008 (http://www.apeg.bc.ca/resource/innovation/archive/2008/2008marapr.pdf) issues of Innovation, APEGBC and the Architectural Institute of BC (AIBC) have been looking into a cost-effective means of providing digital signature and electronic seal technology to its members. The chosen provider for both APEGBC and AIBC is a non-profit organization by the name of Notarius, a company that was created by the notaries public in Quebec to provide digital certificate technology solutions for its members. Notarius has been recognized as a leader in this field for regulated professions and now offers its services to a range of regulated professions in Canada.

By having Notarius provide both organizations with the same technology, this achieved the following benefits:

• a better pricing structure for members and licensees from both Associations who purchase this technology
• promotes the acceptance of electronically transmitted documents in the market place due to three of the senior design and applied science professions in BC using the same technology in all areas of the province.
• facilitates coordinating the electronic transmission of engineering and architectural design documents related to a given building project.
• enhances the ability of engineers and architects to collaborate and communicate in a more efficient and effective manner as they work to serve the public’s interest.

It is anticipated that both cost and time saving implications may prove to be an important consideration for members and licensees choosing to use this new option for applying their signature and seal to professional documentation.

In order to reflect the use of the digital signature and electronic seal technology, APEGBC Council has recently approved revisions to the APEGBC Bulletin I:  Use of Seal.  The updated document can be found at http://www.apeg.bc.ca/ppractice/ppdocs.html.

Legislation that makes electronic documents as enforceable as hard copy, and allows for electronic production and delivery is now in place in BC. The legislation requires that any authority permitting electronic signature, seal and delivery must have adequate measures in place to ensure those documents actually come from the person or entity claiming to produce and deliver them. It must also ensure that the documents themselves are trustworthy and secure, and will remain so over time.  The process, procedures and documentation put in place by APEGBC and AIBC in combination with the digital signature technology provided by the service provider meets the measures required by legislation.

The use of a digital signature and electronic seal for the electronic storage and/or transmission of professional documents is permissible if and only if an APEGBC member or licensee with current authority to sign and seal documents under the Engineers and Geoscientist Act, bylaws and APEGBC rules, acquires a digital signature issued by Notarius under the authority of the APEGBC.

The following is a brief explanation of the four driving considerations that must be addressed when contemplating technology involving digital signature, electronic seal and the electronic transmission of documents. 

1.   Security of the digital signature and electronic seal. There must be a way of ensuring that only an authorized person (in this case a member or licensee in good standing who meets the requirements for signature/seal under the Act and bylaws) is able to apply their digital signature and electronic seal to an electronic document. This is fundamental to the public protection mandate of the APEGBC as a regulatory body as well as to protecting the security and reputation of engineers and geoscientists in practice. To ensure this regulatory imperative, the APEGBC must be able to grant permission for issuance and use of the digital signature and electronic seal, and must be able to revoke permission if and when circumstances warrant. 

2.   Revocability of the digital signature and electronic seal.  The regulatory authority must be able to retract the digital signature which effectively prevents a person from applying an electronic version of their seal if and when they lose practice/title rights of membership. The only way this can be done is if the APEGBC works closely with a sole service provider that can issue the digital signature and that can revoke the certificate if the certificate holder ceases to be a member or licensee.

3.   Verification/authentication of the document now and into the future. Currently, any digitally signed and electronically sealed and delivered document must be able to be first verified and authenticated as coming from the person who claims to be sending it; and second, as a true unaltered original in the future. This is accomplished when using electronic certification technology such as that offered by Notarius, APEGBC’s identified secure certificate provider. When a member attaches their electronic certificate to a document, the technology will automatically indicate to all who receive and rely on the document, whether the person has a valid certificate and whether they can rely on it.

      In addition to verification, the certificate also “locks down” the document.  If any changes are made to the document after it is has been “signed”, the technology will note that the document has been modified and be able to show the changes made. This makes it possible for members and licensees to prove what documents they have signed and be able to determine if or when changes to their documents were made in the event of a dispute.

4.   Storage of the document itself.  The average lifespan of an electronic document has variously been reported at between three to five years - not a long time, particularly since potential professional accountability and legal liability issues can arise many years later.  While the APEGBC has taken steps to address considerations of security, revocation, and authentication/verification, it cannot address storage issues directly. This is something that must be addressed by the member and licensees. This said, the APEGBC requires as a matter of prudent practice that members have document storage, backup, and recovery systems in place that meet legal and regulatory requirements. Members and licensees are also required to consult with their relevant information technology and legal experts to ensure they are adequately protected.  It should be noted that under the Engineers and Geoscientists Act members and licensees are required to retain their complete design and review files for their projects for a minimum period of 10 years.  An additional consideration is that in BC the current provisions in the Limitation Act, as they relate to professional liability, allow for an ultimate limitations period of up to 30 years.