This has been pretty well flogged, but what the hey.
What if instead of trying to do a screen capture as "proof", they pop up
a mailto form prepopulated with whatever the text is and have them type
their name (or: "Yes, indeed. I agree!") at the bottom and send it?
Alternately, the same mailto plus have the person digitally sign the
document before sending.
If they currently accept a un-notarized paper showing up via snailmail
as legit, they ought to be satisfied with a digitally signed email. If
they have delusions wrt nonrepudiation, point them at Applied
Cryptography (Schneier) (that'll teach 'em) ;-(
This assumes logical arguments will be effective, of course.
Steve
George Toft wrote:
>
> I need your thoughts and opinions on this topic.
>
> We (Big Corporation I work for) are about to launch a web project to replace a
> paper form. The regulations (or practice) in the Company is to image everything
> that comes in from the members, and to store electronic images of everything
> that
> goes out to the members. This gives the Customer Service Reps the ability to
> recall everything that was ever sent to or received from a member
> instantaneously.
>
> To replace this paper document that a person must sign once per year and mail
> in, the Business wants to webify the form, let the member click on the proper
> boxes, and submit the form. Since the member had to authenticate to the system
> to get to the form, we know who "electronically" signed it when they submitted
> it.
> In keeping with the previous paragraph of imaging everything the member sends
> us,
> the Business is proposing to capture the members computer screen in a screenshot
> using a java applet, and transmitting that over the Internet to our servers,
> where
> it will be stored in lieu of the paper form. "That way, we know exactly what
> the
> member saw."
>
> What are your thoughts?
>
> George
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