Signing a PDF is more than just adding a signature field. Depending on what you're sending, you may need to control how people sign, what information they provide, and what happens to the document once everyone has finished.
The PDF Signature Settings give you control over these details. They cover the options that affect the signing process, like signature requirements, signer information and how completed documents are handled. Some settings are straightforward, while others are easy to overlook if you're setting up a document for the first time.
In this guide, we'll go through each part of the PDF Signature Settings, explain what it does, and show you when you may actually want to use it.
Summary
- Where to Find It
- 1. Verify Signature
- 2. Signing Certificates
- 3. Preferences
Where to Find It
Go to Settings → E-Signature, under the Signing and Sending section in the sidebar.
1. Verify Signature
This is the tool at the top of the page, and it's the one you'll probably use most.
Upload any signed PDF, whether it was signed through GoSign or somewhere else, and GoSign will check whether the digital signature on it is valid. It's a way to confirm a document hasn't been tampered with after it was signed, without needing to dig through Submissions or trust a claim at face value.
To use it, click Verify Signed PDF, or drag your file into the box. There's nothing to configure beforehand, you just use it as needed.
2. Signing Certificates
This is where GoSign manages the digital certificate used to sign your documents.
By default, every account already has one: GoSign Autogenerated, valid until May 2126, and marked as your Default certificate. Unless you have a specific reason to change it, this one handles everything for you already.
You'd only need to touch this section if your business has its own signing certificate, for example, one issued for compliance reasons, or because a client requires signatures tied to your organization's identity rather than GoSign's. In that case, click UPLOAD CERT to add it.
3. Preferences
Two toggles and one dropdown live here, and unlike the sections above, these are genuine set-once preferences.
Apply multiple PDF digital signatures in the document per each signer
Off by default. With this off, a document with multiple signers gets one overall digital signature once everyone's done. Turn it on, and each signer gets their own separate digital signature applied to the document instead.
Remove PDF form fillable fields from the signed PDF (flatten form)
On by default. Once a document is signed, this locks the form fields so they can't be edited anymore, "flattening" them into the final PDF. Leave this on unless you specifically need the completed document to stay editable after signing, which is rare.
Document download filename format
A dropdown for how downloaded files get named. It defaults to Document Name.pdf, using the document's own title as the filename. If you need a different naming convention for how you file or search for signed documents, this is where you'd change it.
