Checking for a Security Certificate

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated February 9, 2019)

Starting with Word 2000, you could "digitally sign" your documents and templates with a security certificate. Technically, it is the VBA projects attached to documents and templates that can be signed. In your macros you may want to verify that the certificate is in place. Checking for the signature programmatically can make it easier to manage the overall security efforts of a company.

The property you can use for this purpose is VBASigned. You can use it as follows:

Documents.Open FileName:="D:\dotfiles\temp.dot"
If Not ActiveDocument.VBASigned Then
    MsgBox "Warning! This document has not been digitally signed.", _
      vbCritical, "Digital Signature Warning"
End If

The VBASigned property will be either True or False, depending on whether the document (in this case a template) has been signed.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the WordTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1461) applies to Microsoft Word 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

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