How to Validate Digital Signature in e-Aadhaar
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April 27, 2026
A valid digital signature protects your e-Aadhaar from potential scams. It is important to validate your digital signature in e-Aadhaar to avoid unpleasant surprises. In this blog, we have decoded how to validate digital signature in e-Aadhaar.
Why Do You Need to Validate It?
Sometimes, when you open the eAadhaar PDF in a PDF reader, the signature area may show a question mark or a message like “Validity unknown.” That does not mean there is an issue with your Aadhaar. It usually means the digital signature has not yet been trusted or validated on that system. UIDAI itself provides an official tutorial on YouTube specifically for validating the digital signature on eAadhaar.
How to Check Whether The Signature is Already Valid
Open your eAadhaar PDF in Adobe Reader on a desktop or laptop and look at the signature box.

Step-By-Step Process ro Validate The Signature
Step 1: Open the eAadhaar PDF in Adobe Reader
Start by opening the downloaded file on a desktop. This process works best in the desktop version of Adobe Reader, because that is where the signature tools are clearly available.
Step 2: Check whether the signature is already valid
Look at the digital signature section in the PDF, which you can find on the left leaf/side of the Aadhaar card. If it shows “Signature valid,” stop there. If it shows a question mark or “Validity unknown,” continue with the next steps. This is important because not every eAadhaar needs manual validation on every system.
Step 3: Right-click the question mark or signature box
This opens the signature options menu. The purpose of this step is to access the signature details and certificate settings linked to the PDF signature.
Step 4: Click on “Show Signature Properties”
This opens the signature details window. Here, you can see the current status of the signature and move to the signer certificate.
Step 5: Click “Show Signer’s Certificate”
This opens the certificate used to sign the eAadhaar PDF. The next steps are about trusting that certificate on your system so Adobe PDF Reader can validate it properly.
Step 6: Open the “Trust” tab and add the certificate to trusted certificates
Go to the Trust tab, click “Add to Trusted Certificates,” and confirm the security prompt. This tells Adobe PDF Reader to trust the certificate used for the UIDAI digital signature.
Step 7: Return and click “Validate Signature”
Once the trust settings are saved, go back to the Signature Properties window and click “Validate Signature.” Adobe PDF Reader will now recheck the signature using the updated trust settings.
Step 8: Confirm that the status changes to “Signature valid”
If the process is completed correctly, the earlier question mark should disappear and the status should show “Signature valid.”
Final Thoughts
Validating the digital signature in eAadhaar is mainly about making sure the UIDAI signature is properly recognised by your PDF reader. It helps remove the unknown-signature warning and makes the document easier to use wherever signature visibility matters. Since UIDAI already treats eAadhaar as a digitally signed and legally valid Aadhaar copy, this step is mainly about proper software recognition and smoother document use.
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FAQs
1. Can I validate the eAadhaar signature on a mobile PDF app?
Usually, no. UIDAI’s validation tutorial is built around the desktop PDF workflow, and Adobe Reader is the supported software UIDAI names for viewing digitally verified eAadhaar.
2. Do I need Adobe Reader to validate the digital signature in eAadhaar?
Yes. UIDAI says a PDF Reader is needed to view digitally verified eAadhaar, which is why the signature-validation process is generally done using Adobe Reader.
3. Does “Validity unknown” mean my eAadhaar is invalid?
No. An eAadhaar itself is a digitally signed electronic copy of Aadhaar and is equally valid as the physical copy for all purposes. A “Validity unknown” message may be about software trust settings, not automatic invalidity of the document itself.
4. Should I check whether the signature is already valid before starting the process?
Yes. Open the PDF first and look at the signature box. If it already shows “Signature valid,” you do not need to repeat the validation steps.
5. Why is my eAadhaar not validating even though the PDF is genuine?
This is because document validity and software trust are not the same thing. UIDAI treats eAadhaar as valid, but the PDF reader may still need the signer certificate to be trusted before the signature displays as valid.
6. What is the most common mistake people make during e-Aadhaar signature validation?
Using the wrong software, trying to do it on mobile, or starting the process without first checking whether the signature is already valid.