Gabriela de Ávila Machado
Lawyer at Marcos Martins Advogados
Decree no. 10,543, which regulates the use of electronic signatures in the federal public administration and article 5 of Law no. 14,063, regarding the minimum level required for electronic signatures in interactions with the public entity, was published on November 13, 2020, in the Federal Official Gazette.
Its text provides for three minimum levels for electronic signatures in the various acts of the federal public administration: (i) simple signature; (ii) advanced electronic signature; and (iii) qualified electronic signature.
The levels seek to guarantee greater protection for documents, depending on their nature and the services they offer, according to each entity’s User Services Charter. However, as long as the state of emergency in public health persists, the use of simple signatures will also be allowed for various other situations.
The Decree also assigns users a series of responsibilities regarding the security of information in electronically signed documents, as well as the safekeeping, secrecy and correct use of access credentials and their physical and authentication devices.
In addition, they will be responsible for informing the competent authorities of any misuse of these tools, in which case the Administration will take disciplinary action to suspend access to compromised signatures.
