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If you happened to open a PDF document signed with a qualified electronic signature and saw the following next to it yellow question mark, then you probably thought: „Is the signature invalid?.
Rest assured - most often there is no reason to panic. This symbol means that the program in which you opened the file,is not able to fully verify the signature, not that the signature is wrong or worthless.
In this article, we explain:
Adobe Reader relies on so-called trusted vendor lists to verify qualified signatures. If the program can't explicitly check the certificate or doesn't trust the issuer, it will display an „unverified status” message just in the form of a yellow question mark.
Most common causes:
This is a global list of vendors whose certificates Adobe recognizes as trustworthy. It gives qualified signatures from the US or Asia, for example, immediate green status in the program.
This in turn official list of qualified trust service providers in the European Union, published by the European Commission. In Poland, Certum and other certification centers are on it.
Why do they need to be updated? Because the list of providers changes - new ones appear, others expire, certificates are renewed. Without regular updates, the program will not trust even fully valid and qualified signatures.
1 . Go to Menu
2. select: Trust manager
3 Check the option:
4 Check the option:
5. confirm by clicking “OK”
From then on, Adobe will use the current trust sources and qualified signatures from, for example, Certum will display as green - correctly verified.
Adobe Reader only verifies signatures internal in the format PAdES (i.e., in PDF files). What if you sign the files XML, ZIP, DOCX or other data?
Here you need to use dedicated Tools:
We wrote more about this in the article: How to verify an electronic signature? PAdES, XAdES and CAdES. Guide
- worth a look there if you work with different types of files on a daily basis.
On the podpisano.pl hotline we often hear: „Why do I need these updates when everything was working?”. Unfortunately, in the world of digital trust services „Worked” does not mean „still works”. Certificates, trust lists and software are constantly changing, and keeping them up to date is a the foundation of security and reliability of electronic signature.
No updates:
The yellow question mark in the PDF next to the qualified signature is signal of lack of full verification, not the invalidity of the signature. The most common culprit is outdated trust lists in Adobe Reader. The solution? Enable and update AATL and EUTL, take care of Internet access and regular updates Software.
Remember, too, that Adobe is not everything - other document formats require tools such as. SmartSign or WebNotarius, which we have written about in separate articles on podpisano.pl.
Because in digital trust services, certainty and timeliness are key.
If you have any concerns or questions, please contact us
We'll answer your questions, find a time that works for you, and match you with an advisor at one of our locations throughout Poland.
You can also write an email from us [email protected].
