Digital signatures added to PDF documents

Publishing software maker Adobe Systems announced a partnership Tuesday with authentication company Identrus to add secure digital signatures to documents based on Adobe's portable document format (PDF). Identrus will integrate its SimpleSign service with Adobe's Acrobat applications for creating PDF files.

Adobe executives expect initial interest to be strong among financial institutions. Banking giant Wells Fargo conducted a successful test program with SimpleSign-enabled PDF forms and has said it will continue to use the technology. Besides cutting down on paperwork, digitally signed documents can help foil "phishing" scams, the growing practice of sending out fake financial documents to capture sensitive user data. "This way, your bank...can actually add digital signatures so that when you open a document, you can verify the sender," said Eugene Lee, vice president of product marketing for Adobe.