Signature history

Every electronic signature is kept as part of a permanent signature history. This is the record an auditor asks for: proof of who approved what, when, and on what basis — assembled automatically as people sign, not reconstructed afterward.

A complete record on the item

Each approved record carries its own signature history — the full list of signatures it has accumulated, each showing the signer, the timestamp, and the meaning of that signature. Reading it tells the whole approval story of the record at a glance: it was authored by one person, reviewed by another, approved by a third, each on a recorded date.

The electronic signature log

Across the organization, signatures roll up into an electronic signature log — a single, searchable record of signing activity. Where the per-item history answers “how was this record approved?”, the log answers “show me every signature in this period,” which is exactly the evidence a Part 11 inspection looks for.

Permanent and tamper-evident

A signature record is not editable after the fact. Signatures, their timestamps, and their meanings are retained as part of the tamper-evident audit trail, so the history can’t be quietly altered to tell a different story. This permanence is what gives an electronic signature the same standing as a handwritten one.

Tied to the rest of the evidence

Signature history doesn’t stand alone — it’s part of the same connected record as the item’s versions, its review, and its place in the thread. An approval can be traced back to the exact version of the record that was signed, so there’s never ambiguity about what was approved. How the underlying controls make all of this hold together is covered in Part 11 enforcement.