Adobe PDF Digital ID Signature

CREATING AN ADOBE DIGITAL ID (PC)

1. In Acrobat, click the Edit menu and choose Preferences > Signatures.
2. On the right, click More for Identities & Trusted Certificates.
3. Select Digital IDs on the left, and then click the icon below to add an ID
4. Select the option A new digital ID I want to create now, and click Next.
5. Specify where to store the digital ID as the default (New PKCS) and click Next.
6. On the next screen type your: Name, Organization Unit (History), and Organizational Name (Dartmouth College), and email address, and click Next. When you certify or sign a document, the name appears in the Signatures panel and in the Signature field.
7. Specify where you would like the File saved if other than the default location and type a password for the digital ID file. For each keystroke, the password strength meter evaluates your password and indicates the password strength using color patterns. Reconfirm your password. Click Finish.  
8. Congratulations! Your Digital ID is created.

Check out Adobe's Managing Digital IDs for more information.

CREATING AN ADOBE DIGITAL ID (Mac)

1. Please read the below disclosure before getting started because Adobe is not the default PDF software on Mac devices.
2. Once you have opened a PDF using Adobe Acrobat Reader DC make sure that you are signed in (top right corner). 
3. This will prompt you to either Sign In using an existing account or Create an account. 
4. Once logged in access Preferences by clicking on the blue circle in the top right corner.
5. In the Preferences menu select Signatures and then click More under Identities & Trusted Certificates.
6. Within Digital IDs click the icon (typical ID card with + sign) below for adding an ID.
7. Select the option A new digital ID I want to create now, and click Next.
8. On the next screen type your: Name, Organization Unit (History), and Organizational Name (Dartmouth College), and email address, and click Next. When you certify or sign a document, the name appears in the Signatures panel and in the Signature field.
9. Specify where you would like the File saved if other than the default location and type a password for the digital ID file. For each keystroke, the password strength meter evaluates your password and indicates the password strength using color patterns. Reconfirm your password. Click Finish. 
10. Congratulations! Your Digital ID is created.

Check out Adobe's Managing Digital IDs for more information.

SIGNING A PDF WITHOUT AN EXISTING SIGNATURE FLAG

1. Open the form that you need to provide your digital signature.
2. Click More Tools from the menu on the right.
3. Click Open under the Certificates icon.
4. Click Digitally Sign from the options at the top of the document window.
5. This will prompt a pop-up screen within Adobe that provides you with additional instructions on how to add your signature. Click OK.
6. Your cursor will become crosshairs, draw a box for your signature where you would like to sign.  
7. The Sign with Digital ID will open. Select your Digital ID and Click Continue.
8. Your Digital ID will open. Enter your Password and click Sign (scroll down for guidance on if you have forgotten your password).
9. Finally, you will be prompted to Save your newly signed PDF to a location of your choosing.

SIGNING A PDF WITH AN EXISTING SIGNATURE FLAG

1. Open the form that you need to provide your digital signature.
2. Usually, there will be a Sign Here flag. Click inside the field and the Sign with a Digital ID window will open.
3. The Sign with Digital ID will populate with digital signatures that are stored on your computer. If you have stored it elsewhere then you may have to navigate to find it using the Configure New Digital ID and selecting Use a Digital ID from a file.
4. Select the Digital ID that you would like to use and click Continue.
5. The Digital ID you selected will open so you can verify that it is the signature that you want to use. Enter your Password and click Sign (scroll down for guidance on if you have forgotten your password).
6. Finally, you will be prompted to Save your newly signed PDF to a location of your choosing. 

How do I recover or reset my digital ID's password?

Unfortunately, you cannot recover or reset the password if you've forgotten it. If you created the ID yourself, you can create a new one with the same information that you used for the ID. If you got the ID from a certificate authority, contact the authority for help.

You can remove a digital ID (whose password you have forgotten) by deleting your old digital signature file (.pfx file). The location of the .pfx file should be in the same default location as what you specified during creation of that digital signature (for example: C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\Adobe\Acrobat\10.0\Security\). NOTE: The folder names / paths will be different based on operating system).

Click here for additional guidance.