How do I setup an electronic signature in Accounting Core?

Although setting up an electronic signature for printing on checks can usually be done by a client user with system administrator privileges in Accounting Core, M3 stands by to assist with this important and useful feature.

If you are a corporate-level user and would like assistance from M3 technical support setting up a check signature, please submit a support request and have the following items and permissions ready if possible so that what can promptly assist you:

1. Electronic copy of the check, which can be made using the following steps:
   1. Sign a blank, white piece of paper
   2. Use a black ink pen, not a permanent marker
   3. Sign the normal size signature on the page
      1. We recommend signing at least a few times on the page so that the best quality signature can be chosen by our technicians
   4. Scan the blank document through a scanner (cell phone pictures will not work) making sure auto-cropping is turned off
      1. This preserves the scaling

          Note: An example scanned document with signatures is attached to this post for reference

2. Make sure that your Accounting Core user account has the following permissions:
   1. Enterprise-level access (Access tab->Access->check the top box
      1. Only if signature will be set for entire Enterprise
   2. Modify Check Layout (found under Roles tab->Privileges->Check Writer)
      1. NOTE: Only if the signature object is not turned on, in most cases it is on
   3. The following permissions, found under Roles tab->Privileges->Select Company in User Manager:
      1. Modify Check Signature
      2. Use

If you have any questions or would just like to learn more about this useful feature in Accounting Core, please don’t hesitate to contact M3 for further assistance.

NOTE: Check signature setup is typically assisted within 24-48 business hours from the time of support request.

What controls are in place for this?  How do we authorize accounts payable to cut only approved checks with the signature printed?

Hello Courtney, 

There are 2 control features that can be used. 

• Only users that cut checks should have the check signature file in the appropriate path associated to your database, or the bank account(s) that checks are cut from. A user that attempts to print checks that does not have the signature file, would receive an error and would not be able to complete the check print process.
• At each company level a dollar amount can be set so that checks higher then a specific amount would not have a signature printed on them. 

If you have any further questions, please let us know and we can open a case for a Technician to follow up with you.

Are these still the only controls in place for the check signatures? 

Hello Courtney,

Yes, each of the control mentioned above are still valid. No additional functionality or enhancements have been added into the system. If you are looking for an additional control to restrict un-authorized payments, the only other suggestion that I could make would be to use the payment approval process. 

Please let me know if you would like to learn more about this and I will have a technician reach out to provide feedback on how this function works.