E-Bonding
Electronic Documents: Required Criteria
From a technical standpoint, the technology to create, record, execute and deliver electronic bonds is commercially available. Regardless of the system used, it is important that the end-user trusts the process and is assured that the “document” received is as valid as any paper equivalent. In that regard it’s crucial that any electronic document received meet three threshold criteria:
Integrity of Content
The assurances that the document received is the true document executed and the content has not been changed or altered.
Secure Access
Restricting the access to the document to those authorized to view and/or download it.
Verifiability / Enforceability
Assurances that the document was duly executed by the parties identified and that it is enforceable in law.
There are a number of commercially available software programs capable of creating reliable and enforceable electronic bonds that meet the criteria of the Surety Association of Canada, each having their own technical specifications and processes.
However, since technology evolves at a rapid pace, please note that SAC has discontinued the assessments of e-bonding platforms. It is also important to note that SAC does not endorse or provide approval for the use of any particular platform and suggests to users that with any platform used that the bond produced should meet the criteria as noted above.