Digital Signature
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a cryptographic mechanism that hashes data and encrypts the resulting hash digest with the sender's private key, letting a recipient verify both the integrity of the data and the identity of the sender
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how it works
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the sender hashes the data, then encrypts that hash digest using their own Private Key
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the recipient decrypts the signature using the sender's Public Key, hashes the received data themselves, and compares the two digests
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if the digests match, the data has not been altered (integrity); and since only the sender's private key could have produced a signature decryptable with their public key, the recipient also knows who sent it (Non-repudiation)
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uses
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signing documents/contracts digitally
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see also Code Signing — the same mechanism applied to software
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