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KazuTa
Inspiring
July 22, 2024
Question

signature can be copied and pasted

  • July 22, 2024
  • 2 replies
  • 18221 views

I like the feature in Acrobat where I can upload a picture of my signature and use it to sign PDF forms using "Fill & Sign". However, I was extremely disturbed to discover that my signature can be copied and pasted into another program (i.e., Microsoft Word) and Saved as a Picture by anyone receiving one of my signed PDFs! This is really concerning. I am basically giving my signature away to anyone who wants to use it. 

 

Is there a way I can use a signature on a PDF so that it's "baked into" the page and not be a separate, copy-able layer? The only way I know is to workaround I've been able to come up with is print the form, physically sign it, scan that signed page, then insert the page into the final PDF. However, that's a lot of steps.

 

Please let your users know that it is very dangerous to add a signature using Fill & Sign, because anyone can copy & paste their signatures and use it for whatever purposes they see fit.

    2 replies

    S
    sharlenep69799106
    Participant
    February 1, 2025

    Hi! I agree with you! I only found out today and am extremely upset with this. This is a security risk. There is a workaround. Print your PDF using "Microsoft to PDF." Your signature will no longer be copied. I hope this helps. I hope that Adobe fixes this issue. 

    K
    KazuTaAuthor
    Inspiring
    February 1, 2025

    That sounds like an intriguing workaround. However, I don't see the option in my Acrobat. I'm on a Mac. When I choose the Print option, these are the only options I see:

    try67
    Community Expert
    try67Community Expert
    Community Expert
    July 22, 2024

    Yes, use a digital signature field. Anything else is easily copyable.

    And even with a digital signature be aware that the name (and any other details, such as email address, address, etc.) that appears on it is meaningless. The only thing that matters is that it can be validated against a public key provided by you. I can easily sign using your name, but I can't fake your private key to validate my signature as if it was yours.

    K
    KazuTaAuthor
    Inspiring
    July 22, 2024

    When you say, "use a digital signature field", what do you mean?

    try67
    Community Expert
    try67Community Expert
    Community Expert
    July 23, 2024

    In Acrobat go to Tools - Prepare Form and one of the options is to add a new Signature field, which looks like this:

     

    Use this tool to place the field on the page, and then you would be able to digitally sign the file by simply clicking this field.

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