7.4 Identity Proofing, Credential Analysis & 5-Year Recording Retention

7.4 RON Identity and Five-Year Records

Online identity cannot be based merely on familiarity with an electronic signature. Act 1047 establishes three alternative paths for verifying the principal at the time the electronic signature is taken.

The three identity paths

1. Personal knowledge. The online notary personally knows the person.
2. Credible witness. A credible witness supplies satisfactory evidence of the principal's identity. The witness appears by communication technology and is either personally known to the notary or identified through remote presentation of a government credential.
3. Combined technology method. The principal remotely presents a government-issued identification credential, such as a passport or state driver's license, containing the person's photograph and signature; the solution performs credential analysis; and the principal completes identity proofing.

Under the third route, all three components are required. Showing a license to the camera without credential analysis and identity proofing is incomplete. Passing a data quiz without presenting the credential is also incomplete.

Credential analysis is a third-party process that affirms the validity of the government credential using approved criteria and public or proprietary data. Identity proofing is a separate approved process that affirms an individual's identity through personal information sources.

Do not invent fixed KBA numbers

Act 1047 does not say that every principal must answer exactly five questions, earn 80 percent, finish in two minutes, receive one retake, or wait 24 hours. A particular approved provider may use such controls, but they are provider standards rather than universal numbers stated in the Arkansas statute. Exam answers should track the law's terms: remote presentation plus credential analysis plus identity proofing.

Required electronic record

For each online act, A.C.A. § 21-14-310 requires a secure electronic record containing:

• date and time;
• type of online notarial act;
• type, title, or description of the electronic document or proceeding;
• printed name and address of each principal;
• evidence of each principal's identity;
• the relevant video-and-audio conference and notation of identification presented;
• an audio-video copy of the performance of the notarial act; and
• the fee, if any.

Identity evidence may be a statement of personal knowledge, a notation of the identification document, a record of statutory identity verification, or credible-witness information including the witness's name, address, and identification description when applicable.

Backup, security, and retention

The online notary must take reasonable steps to ensure integrity, security, and authenticity; maintain a backup; and protect the backup from unauthorized use. The record must be maintained for at least five years after the transaction or proceeding.

An approved provider may store the record, and the Secretary of State's current page notes provider retention. The notary should verify that the service and account arrangement preserve access and retention as required. Delegating storage does not justify using an unapproved platform or ignoring a provider shutdown notice.

Credential control and termination

The notary should keep passwords, electronic signature capability, and seal credentials secure. When an electronic commission terminates, A.C.A. § 21-14-311 generally requires destruction of the code, disk, certificate, card, software, or password enabling electronic affixation. A former eNotary recommissioned within three months with the same signature and seal may use the statutory exception when termination was not for revocation or denial of renewal. Unauthorized knowing possession, concealment, damage, or destruction of enabling technology is a Class D felony under § 21-14-312.

Scenario

An unknown principal presents a driver's license over the approved platform. The notary cannot stop after visually comparing the picture. Under the combined route, the provider must perform credential analysis and identity proofing as well. The notary then completes the ceremony and ensures the secure record captures the required fields and recording.

If a provider reports that any required identity component failed, the notary must not bypass the result by moving the same session to an ordinary video call. End or reschedule the act under the provider's approved procedure.

Source anchor: Act 1047 of 2021, A.C.A. §§ 21-14-309 through 21-14-312; Arkansas Secretary of State electronic-notary glossary.

Credible-witness evidence is still recorded

The credible-witness route is not an informal introduction on camera. The witness appears through the communication technology and identifies the principal. The statutory definition requires the witness to be personally known to the online notary or identifiable through remote presentation of a government-issued credential. The secure electronic record then captures the witness's printed name and address and, when the witness is not personally known, a description of the identification provided. Record which identity route was actually used; do not describe a failed credential-analysis session as personal knowledge or substitute an unrecorded coworker assurance. The three paths are alternatives, but each has its own evidence. A provider's interface may collect the fields, yet the online notary remains responsible for ensuring that the completed record accurately reflects the witness, principal, identity method, and ceremony.