Section 453.20  Criteria by Which to Judge the Validity of an Electronic Signature

a)         An electronic signature shall indicate who signed the LOA.

b)         An electronic signature shall be unique to the signer.

1)         A digitized version of the handwritten signature of the executing person shall be self-authenticating.

2)         Other Forms of Electronic Signature

A)        For any other form of electronic signature, a security procedure shall require unique and private information from the signer. This information shall include:

i)          Algorithms or codes;

ii)         Identifying words or numbers previously established or sent to signer's e-mail account provided by the signer to the RES; or

iii)        Credit card verification.

B)        An internet protocol (IP) address alone will not satisfy the requirements of this subsection (b)(2).  This information shall not include the customer's account number.

3)         No party shall use a signer's unique information disclosed under this Section for any marketing or billing purposes without specific separate consent from the signee.

4)         The security procedure shall be provided on a securely encrypted web page.

c)         An electronic signature shall reliably indicate the date of the signature.

d)         Affixing an electronic signature to an LOA shall be a separate affirmative act.

e)         The LOA shall be conspicuously displayed on a separate screen or web page.

(Source:  Amended at 41 Ill. Reg. 14013, effective November 1, 2017)