Legal recognition of electronic signatures
Section 5 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 deals with legal recognition of electronic signatures. Where any law provides that information or any other matter shall be authenticated by affixing the signature or any document shall be signed or bear the signature of any person, then, notwithstanding anything contained in such law, such requirement shall be deemed to have been satisfied, if such inf The Act came into force on 17 Oct 2000.
5. Legal recognition of 1 [electronic signatures].--Where any law provides that information or any other matter shall be authenticated by affixing the signature or any document shall be signed or bear the signature of any person, then, notwithstanding anything contained in such law, such requirement shall be deemed to have been satisfied, if such information or matter is authenticated by means of 1 [electronic signature] affixed in such manner as may be prescribed by the Central Government.
Explanation.--For the purposes of this section, "signed", with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions, shall, with reference to a person, mean affixing of his hand written signature or any mark on any document and the expression "signature" shall be construed accordingly.
Section 5, The Information Technology Act, 2000 (Act 21 of 2000).
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
Referred to by 1
Questions about Section 5
What does Section 5 of the Information Technology Act deal with?
Section 5 of the Information Technology Act is headed "Legal recognition of electronic signatures". 5. Legal recognition of [electronic signatures].--Where any law provides that information or any other matter shall be authenticated by affixing the signature or any document shall be signed or bear the signature of any person, then, notwithstanding anything contained in such law, such requirement s
How do I find court cases under Section 5 of the Information Technology Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: IT Act 5, section 5 IT Act, section 5 of the Information Technology Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome.
What should I read with Section 5 of the Information Technology Act, and has it changed?
1 other provision in this corpus refers back to it.
When did Section 5 of the Information Technology Act come into force?
Section 5 of the Information Technology Act, cited as IT Act 5, came into force on 17 Oct 2000, having been enacted on 09 Jun 2000. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 2. Definitions1304 words
- 87. Power of Central Government to make rules877 words
- 43. Penalty and compensation for damage to computer, computer system, etc506 words
- 46. Power to adjudicate370 words
- 89. Power of Controller to make regulations345 words
- 70B. Indian Computer Emergency Response Team to serve as national agency for incident response326 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 15 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.