Information Technology Act, 2000
3. Authentication of electronic records. –
(1) Subject to the provisions of this section,
any subscriber may authenticate an electronic record by affixing his digital
signature.
(2) The authentication of the electronic record
shall be effected by the use of asymmetric crypto system and hash function
which envelop and transform the initial electronic record into another
electronic record.
Explanation.- For the purposes of
this sub-section, "hash function" means an algorithm mapping or
translation of one sequence of bits into another, generally smaller, set known
as "hash result" such that an electronic record yields the same hash
result every time the algorithm is executed with the same electronic record as
its input making it computationally infeasible-
(a) to derive or reconstruct the original
electronic record from the hash result produced by the algorithm;
(b) that two electronic records can produce
the same hash result using algorithm.
(3) Any person by the use of a public key of
the subscriber can verify the electronic record.
(4) The private key and the public key are
unique to the subscriber and constitute a functioning key pair.