According to Article 11 of the Contract Law of People's Republic of China (PRC), written forms refer to contracts, letters, data messages (including telegrams, telexes, faxes, electronic data interchange and e-mails) and other forms that can tangibly express the contents.
According to the provisions of China's Electronic Signature Law, the conditions for an electronic contract to take effect are: both parties to the contract sign an electronic contract and other signing agreements online by using electronic signature technology (using a third-party electronic signature platform). These electronic files can be saved online, extracted, verified by the judiciary, checked by the tax authorities, etc.
Article 13 of the Electronic Signature Law recognizes the legal effect of a reliable electronic signature: an electronic signature is considered reliable if it meets the following conditions:
(1) When electronic signature production data is used for electronic signature, it belongs exclusively to the electronic signer;
(2) When signing, the electronic signature production data is only controlled by the electronic signer;
(3) Any changes to the electronic signature after signature can be found;
(4) Any changes to the content and form of the data message after signature can be found.
Therefore, the electronic contract signed by the subject with reliable electronic signature technology is true and effective as long as it is through a trusted third-party electronic signature platform.