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SecureSign

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What is SecureSign?

SecureSign provided by Annature is the NSW Government’s digital signature service for signing procurement contracts and documents. It works like a ‘digital’ fingerprint and takes the form of a coded message, securely linking a signer with a document in a recorded transaction.

SecureSign enhances security as documents and contracts are only accessed by intended recipients, saves time (as signatures are collected online in minutes), reduces costs (by eliminating paper, print and postage fees) and is kinder to the environment (no paper).

How does it work?

SecureSign is integrated with your buy.nsw Supplier Hub account. A buyer will upload the contract for signing, select the supplier and signatories and prepare the document. Once prepared the document is sent to the signatories for review and signing.

As each signatory signs the document this is tracked through an audit log. When all signatures have been completed both the supplier and buyer will receive a notification and can download the signed document.

Digital signature mandate

From 1 July 2022 all NSW Government agencies must adopt digital signatures for the signing of procurement contracts.

The mandate does not apply to suppliers. We expect many suppliers will prefer to use digital signatures, but they may choose to use other methods including traditional wet signatures. If they would like to learn more about digital signatures, you can direct them here to the Help centre.

If your agency has an existing digital signature capability this can be used to meet the requirements of the mandate.

Agencies that do not have existing digital signature capability do not need to implement one. By using the buy.nsw SecureSign service you will fulfil the mandate requirement. SecureSign is a whole of Government service provided free of charge by the Department of Customer Service to all buyers and suppliers.

Setting a document up for signing

Setting up a document for signing is simple to do.

From your buyer dashboard select the SecureSign tile from your productivity apps.

  1. Select Go to SecureSign and you will be redirected to the SecureSign service
  2. Load your document(s). Using the browse files button, navigate to the document or contract you would like to sign.
    You can upload a word document or PDF. Word documents will automatically be converted to pdf. Depending on the size of your document and internet connection this may take some time.
  3. Add your recipients by first entering the ABN of the supplier and then select the matching profile. The supplier must be registered on the buy.nsw Supplier Hub. If your supplier does not have a registered company profile, please ask them to do so. Information on how to register  can be found in our Help centre.

      To add more than one supplier add your first supplier and recipient(s), and then enter the ABN for the second supplier, search and select the matching profile. Once selected, add the correct second supplier recipients and continue preparing your document.

      If you need to add a Buyer / colleague as a recipient to sign or view your document, please manually add them as a recipient after selecting your supplier(s). You do not need to search for your organisations ABN in the Supplier Hub to add them, however your Buyer / colleague must be registered as a Buyer on the Supplier Hub to be able to access and sign or view the document.

    1. Select your signatories.
      You must select at least one signatory from the list of registered users. Once this has been done additional, unregistered users can be added. Unregistered users will be prompted to register for Supplier Hub when they receive the SecureSign notification. Do not forget to include the delegated signatory for the buyer as the last signer.
    2. Order your signatories.
      By default your document is sent to all recipients at the same time. By enabling the signing order, you can change the default and select the order in which your document is sent and signed. Once the ‘Enable signing order’ toggle switch is activated you can use the number arrows to order your recipients. The signing will then be automatically work-flowed to the recipients in the numbered order you have specified, and the next recipient in the numbered order will not receive the document until the previous recipient has signed.

    3. Prepare your document.
      Prepare your document by adding the fields required for execution to the document. Any information that is held in their Supplier Hub account will automatically pre-populate for the signatories. Fields that require additional information will be left blank for the signatory to complete.
    4. Review and send.
      Once you are happy with your documents, customise your message to recipients or create a private message to individual signatories and select send envelope. Your documents will then be sent to the signatories in the order you have added them.

    Tracking progress and completed documents

    You can track the progress of your documents through your Supplier Hub buyer dashboard. Once all recipients have reviewed and signed the document, all parties will receive a notification and be able to download the completed document.

    Completed documents should be downloaded and saved according to your normal document management processes. SecureSign will only store completed documents for 30 days from execution.

    Why use SecureSign

    The NSW Goverenment digital signature service, SecureSign, makes it quicker and easier to sign procurement contracts with NSW Government. It reduces cost and helps regional and remote businesses better engage with Government supply opportunities.

    SecureSign is free to use for all NSW Government suppliers. The only requirement is a buy.nsw Supplier Hub account. If you don’t have a Supplier Hub account, you will need to create one first. You can find out more about how to register in our Help centre.

    Using SecureSign

    When you need to sign a procurement contract with NSW Government you will be given the option of signing your contract using a digital signature or a traditional wet signature. If you are not given the option of a digital signature speak to your procurement contact.

    If you choose digital signature there is no setup required by you. The buyer will create the digital signing of the contract using SecureSign and you will receive a notification when it is ready for you to review and sign.

    Reviewing and signing a contract is simple.

    1. From your supplier dashboard select the SecureSign tile from your productivity apps.
    2. Select the contract you wish to view and sign from the contract list. You will be redirected to the SecureSign application
    3. You will be asked to agree to reviewing the document. By selecting Review document you are agreeing to complete the document execution electronically.
    4. You can review the document to make sure it is the correct version by scrolling down the screen. When you are ready to sign, select ‘Click to begin’ at the top of your screen.
    5. You will be taken to the section of the document you need to sign. You can sign by selecting a preformatted default signature, drawing or uploading an image.
    6. To complete document execution select ‘Finish signing’.

    Completed documents

    Once all recipients have reviewed and signed the document, all parties will receive a notification and be able to download the completed document.

    Completed documents should be downloaded and saved according to your normal document management processes. SecureSign will only store completed documents for 30 days from execution.

    SecureSign help and support

    If you need help and couldn't find what you were looking for, please email buy.nsw@customerservice.nsw.gov.au or call us on 1800 679 289

    SecureSign

    Sign and execute contracts and documents quickly and easily with SecureSign.

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