Global RON: 24/7 Demand

Welcome to the discussion on how Remote Online Notarization is changing the game for people all over the world. Eddie Montes Travis and Marylyn Lee Trotter explain how 24/7 access to notary services is no longer just a luxury but a necessity for international business and personal legal needs. • Time Zones: Detailed Explanation regarding how the ability to sign documents at any hour removes the barriers of distance and varying local business hours. • International Access: Detailed Explanation on how expats and travelers use digital platforms to complete notarizations from any country without visiting an embassy. • Market Growth: Detailed Explanation of the increasing need for on-call notaries who can handle high-stakes transactions during non-traditional hours. • Platform Reliability: Detailed Explanation about the technology requirements that keep digital signing rooms open and secure every day of the week. Understanding the global reach of these services helps you stay ahead in an interconnected world. Make sure to subscribe and like the podcast for more helpful insights.

Show Notes:
• The shift to 24/7 availability in the notary industry.
• How global clients benefit from Remote Online Notarization.
• Overcoming time zone challenges for legal documents.
• The role of technology in providing constant service access.

Becoming a Notary on Amazon

Notary Knowledge Reference Guide and Notary Bible on Amazon

Your Sunday Notary Reading:
Notary Public Foundation: Essential Guide to Core Duties, Ethics, and Commissioning on Amazon

Your Monday Notary Reading:
Notary Operational Excellence: Mastering Certificates, Journals, Ink, and Copy Certification on Amazon

Your Tuesday Notary Reading:
Notary Fraud Shield: Real-World Tactics, Red Flags, and Refusal Strategies on Amazon

Your Wednesday Notary Reading:
The Mobile Notary Blueprint: Launching and Managing Your On-Demand Business on Amazon

Your Thursday Notary Reading:
Notary Niche Navigator: Your Guide to Loan Signings, Apostilles, I-9s, and More on Amazon

Your Friday Notary Reading:
Notary Law & Liability: Understanding State Regulations, Insurance, and Avoiding UPL on Amazon

Your Saturday Notary Reading:
The Future Notary: Mastering RON, eNotary, and Complex Scenarios on Amazon

Quick & Easy Solutions: How to Increase Mobile Notary Business for More Success & Profit: with 37 Professional Tips on Amazon 

Executive Producer Derrick Spruill
Writers Marylyn Lee Trotter and Eddie Montes Travis
Graphics & Illustrations by Eddie Montes Travis
Music by Thomas Bynum
This Show is Produced by Magnificent Workz
Business Solutions

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:02

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SPEAKER_02 0:40

Imagine for a second that you are attempting to sell your house.

SPEAKER_03 0:44

Right. Or maybe you need to urgently execute, you know, a highly sensitive legal document.

SPEAKER_02 0:50

Yeah, exactly, like a specific power of attorney.

SPEAKER_03 0:52

Right.

SPEAKER_02 0:53

But there is a massive catch.

SPEAKER_03 0:55

There's always a catch.

SPEAKER_02 0:56

Right. You are currently deployed on a military base, halfway across the world. Or uh perhaps you're an expatriate living in a country where you don't even speak the local language. Trevor Burrus, Jr.

SPEAKER_03 1:07

Which is a logistical nightmare.

SPEAKER_02 1:09

Oh, an absolute nightmare. Historically, getting a legally binding signature meant taking days off work, traveling potentially hundreds of miles, and dealing with like backlogged U.S. consulates.

SPEAKER_03 1:20

Aaron Powell Just to have an official physically watch you sign a piece of paper.

SPEAKER_02 1:24

Exactly. But today, the solution to that geographical friction is literally sitting right in your pocket. Welcome to Notary Knowledge.

SPEAKER_03 1:32

Today we are taking a bold, direct, and high-level look at global Ron and the 24-7 demand driving it.

SPEAKER_02 1:39

We're so glad you're joining us. And you know, as we always say, if you've been following our prior episodes, you know we like to get straight to the facts.

SPEAKER_03 1:45

Right. But real quick, if you haven't already, make sure you grab the Notary Knowledge Books by Derek Sprohl.

SPEAKER_02 1:50

Yes, those books are absolute lifesavers for anyone in this field.

SPEAKER_03 1:54

Truly. And while you're at it, please rate the show, subscribe, and you know, share the podcast with others. It really helps us out.

SPEAKER_02 2:02

It really does. All right, we're going to take a quick pause for our commercial sponsors, and then we will jump right into the sources. Stick around. And we're back. So to really understand this shift, we've pulled together a stack of sources, including white papers from the National Association of Secretaries of State.

SPEAKER_03 2:18

Yeah, and we're also looking at state-specific legal frameworks from progressive states like Texas, Florida, and Pennsylvania.

SPEAKER_02 2:26

Plus some industry reports from tech platforms like Proof, ESign Global, and Secured Signing. And our mission today is to uncover how remote online notarization, or ON, became this permanent, highly secure digital infrastructure.

SPEAKER_03 2:41

Because it's no longer just a pandemic band-aid. A digital notarization is actually exponentially more secure than a traditional paper signature.

SPEAKER_02 2:48

I'm so glad you brought up the security aspect. Because before we talk about crossing borders, we really need to clarify what RON actually is.

SPEAKER_03 2:56

Oh, for sure. There's so much confusion out there.

SPEAKER_02 2:58

People assume Ron is just, you know, opening a PDF and clicking a button to slap a cursive font on the signature line.

SPEAKER_03 3:04

Right, which is absolutely not a notarization. Our sources highlight a critical distinction between IPen, which is in-person electronic notarization, and true RON.

SPEAKER_02 3:15

IPEN still requires you to be physically present in the exact same room as the notary, right?

SPEAKER_03 3:20

Exactly. The document is digital, but the witnessing is entirely physical. You're still breathing the same air.

SPEAKER_02 3:26

So it's kind of like using a digital pen on an iPad at the checkout counter. The cashier is standing right there watching you.

SPEAKER_03 3:32

Yeah, that's a great analogy. Whereas Ron is more like constructing a tamper-proof vault around a live video connection.

SPEAKER_02 3:39

Enabled by laws like eSign and UEDA. So the personal appearance requirement is satisfied virtually. You could be in Tokyo and your notary is in Texas.

SPEAKER_03 3:48

Right. But obviously, that brings up a huge question.

SPEAKER_02 3:51

Yeah, I have to play the skeptic here. Because anyone listening is probably wondering if I'm just looking at a notary over a webcam, how do they know I'm not holding up a fake ID?

SPEAKER_03 4:01

It's the most common concern. In person, you can feel the plastic, look at the hologram.

SPEAKER_02 4:06

Tilt it in the light. Yeah. Over Zoom, I could just use a decent prop.

SPEAKER_03 4:10

And that skepticism is exactly why Ron platforms use an incredibly complex security stack. The notary isn't just squinting at their screen trying to spot a forgery.

SPEAKER_02 4:19

Oh, thank goodness.

SPEAKER_03 4:20

Right. It heavily relies on automated algorithmic systems. So before you even see the notary, you usually have to clear a major hurdle called knowledge-based authentication or KBA.

SPEAKER_02 4:32

Okay, let's break that down. KBA is basically a timed quiz, right?

SPEAKER_03 4:35

Yeah, it pulls from your public records and credit history in real time. It'll ask things like uh what street address you lived at in 2014.

SPEAKER_02 4:42

Or the make and model of a car you financed. And the sources say this is designed to be highly stressful. You only have two minutes.

SPEAKER_03 4:49

Exactly. So an imposter can't just open a new tab and Google your public records. You need an 80% to pass.

SPEAKER_02 4:55

And if you fail.

SPEAKER_03 4:57

You usually only get one more try within a 24-hour period before you're completely locked out.

SPEAKER_02 5:02

Wow. But KBA is only one layer. What about the fake ID on camera?

SPEAKER_03 5:07

That brings us to credential analysis. The system itself does the heavy lifting. You take high-res photos of your ID with your smartphone.

SPEAKER_02 5:15

And it uses OCR, right? Optical character recognition.

SPEAKER_03 5:18

Yes. It scrutinizes the embedded security features, it parses the microprinting, the barcode formatting on the back, the holograms, dozens of forensic tests in seconds.

SPEAKER_02 5:29

Which a human eye could never do over a webcam. And combining those two layers brings up this concept from our sources called the two-form fallacy.

SPEAKER_03 5:37

Oh, this is a brilliant observation. Early on, states vaguely required two forms of identity proofing, but they didn't specify how they should interact.

SPEAKER_02 5:45

They confused validation with verification.

SPEAKER_03 5:48

Exactly. Validation is proving the physical document is real. That's the credential analysis.

SPEAKER_02 5:53

Validating that the Texas license isn't a forgery.

SPEAKER_03 5:56

Right. Verification is proving the live human on camera is the actual owner of that validated ID. That's KBA.

SPEAKER_02 6:03

Okay, I see the loophole. If a platform uses KBA and then asks for a password, that's technically two forms of verification.

SPEAKER_03 6:10

But they skipped validation entirely.

SPEAKER_02 6:12

So you could pass KBA because you bought someone's credit history on the dark web while holding a totally fabricated ID card.

SPEAKER_03 6:19

Exactly. You've handed the keys to a highly informed thief. You absolutely must have both pillars.

SPEAKER_02 6:25

But wait, the sources reveal a glaring flaw with KBA. What if you're an American living in Germany for the last decade, or an 18-year-old military recruit?

SPEAKER_03 6:34

People with thin credit files.

SPEAKER_02 6:36

Yeah. They haven't bought a house or financed a car. Wouldn't they just fail KBA instantly because the system can't generate the quiz?

SPEAKER_03 6:43

They absolutely fail instantly. And it actively disenfranchises a huge portion of the global population.

SPEAKER_02 6:50

Which is why the industry is pivoting, right?

SPEAKER_03 6:52

Yes, heavily. They are moving toward biometric facial matching and AI liveness detection.

SPEAKER_02 6:57

So instead of a credit quiz, it just scans the geometry of my face.

SPEAKER_03 7:00

Exactly. After validating your ID, it maps your facial geometry, the distance between your eyes, your jawline, and compares it to the ID photo.

SPEAKER_02 7:08

But how does it stop someone from holding up a high-quality photo to the camera? Spoofing.

SPEAKER_03 7:13

Liveness detection. The AI doesn't just look for blinking, it performs active stereoscopic analysis. It measures how light interacts with your face.

SPEAKER_02 7:22

Oh wow. Subsurface scattering.

SPEAKER_03 7:25

Yes. Human skin absorbs light differently than a flat LED screen. It mathematically proves you are a living, breathing human being.

SPEAKER_02 7:34

That is wild. And that technological leap perfectly transitions to the demographics who rely on this the most. Yeah. The military and the global expatriate community.

SPEAKER_03 7:44

The demand is practically 24-7. When a service member is deployed, life back home doesn't stop.

SPEAKER_02 7:50

Like trying to close on a house using a VA loan. Real estate underwriters are incredibly strict. They require a specific power of attorney.

SPEAKER_03 7:57

Right. It has to detail the exact property address, the loan amount down to the penny, and a strict expiration date.

SPEAKER_02 8:02

Trying to execute that while deployed on a forward operating base. You'd have to find a legal officer, physically sign it, rely on military mail.

SPEAKER_03 8:10

Which is highly vulnerable to delays. Ron lets them log into a secure portal from their barracks, authenticate biometrically, and execute it in minutes.

SPEAKER_02 8:19

The sources also mention deers, the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System.

SPEAKER_03 8:24

Yeah, enrolling a newborn dependent. If a service member is deployed when their child is born, they urgently need notarized documents to grant their spouse legal standing.

SPEAKER_02 8:33

So Rod is a literal lifeline for these families. And expats face similar hurdles, especially with real estate and U.S. tax law.

SPEAKER_03 8:41

Oh, Ferpia is a massive headache. The Foreign Investment and Real Property Tax Act.

SPEAKER_02 8:46

Yeah, if a property deed is improperly notarized abroad, it can completely cloud the title.

SPEAKER_03 8:51

Which invites legal challenges from junior creditors years down the line. It can blow up a multimillion dollar transaction.

SPEAKER_02 8:57

So expats used to rely on U.S. embassies, which means long wait times, limited hours, sometimes even boarding a train or plane just to get there.

SPEAKER_03 9:05

Ron bypasses that archaic system entirely, but it creates a puzzle. How do platforms process foreign nationals who don't have US IDs?

SPEAKER_02 9:14

The Florida advantage. Florida's progressive ARN laws explicitly authorize notaries to accept a valid foreign passport as a primary credential.

SPEAKER_03 9:23

So an expat in Berlin doesn't need a U.S. Social Security number. They bypass the KBA firewall entirely.

SPEAKER_02 9:30

The system forensically validates the foreign passport with OCR, does the biometric facial matching, and boom.

SPEAKER_03 9:37

And because of interstate commerce principles, a Florida notary can legally notarize it, and it's recognized across all 50 states.

SPEAKER_02 9:44

It's amazing. And looking at the tech platforms managing this, there are distinct differences. Like proof, formerly notarized.

SPEAKER_03 9:51

They focus heavily on enterprise-level real estate and high-volume legal workflows, high assurance verification.

SPEAKER_02 9:58

Then you have secured signing, which leans into defake detection.

SPEAKER_03 10:00

Yeah, they process over 16,000 different types of global government IDs.

SPEAKER_02 10:05

And eSign Global is dominating the APAC region, Asia Pacific. They built direct API integrations into government digital identity systems.

SPEAKER_03 10:13

Like SyncPass in Singapore and I am smart in Hong Kong. They don't guess if the idea is real. The government's own servers confirm it in real time.

SPEAKER_02 10:21

Which is incredible. But hearing about all this third-party tech processing deep biometric data raises a red flag for me.

SPEAKER_03 10:29

I know exactly what you're gonna ask.

SPEAKER_02 10:31

If I'm selling my home, who actually controls the records? If the tech platform goes bankrupt tomorrow, what happens to the evidence of my transaction?

SPEAKER_03 10:39

State legislators were acutely aware of this. The answer is electronic notary journals.

SPEAKER_02 10:45

In the analog world, it was a physical leather-bound ledger. How does the digital equivalent work?

SPEAKER_03 10:52

States like Texas and Florida mandate highly secure electronic journals. It automatically captures the date, time, signer info, and the exact identity verification method used.

SPEAKER_02 11:02

And they have to keep the actual video evidence, right? The unedited audio visual recording.

SPEAKER_03 11:06

Yes, protected by military grade encryption, AES256. But more importantly, it must have a tamper-evident audit log using cryptographic hashing. Right. Think of a hash as a mathematical fingerprint. If someone alters a single pixel of the signature ten years later, the hash breaks.

SPEAKER_02 11:22

Proving to a judge that it was tampered with. And how long do they keep these files?

SPEAKER_03 11:25

In Texas, it's a minimum of five years. In Florida, it's 10. And to answer your concern, the law explicitly states the notary must retain exclusive control of that journal.

SPEAKER_02 11:37

So the platform is just the software conduit. The notary is legally responsible. Even if the tech company vanishes, the notary has to have it backed up.

SPEAKER_03 11:44

Exactly. The legal burden rests on the human notary.

SPEAKER_02 11:48

Okay. So we have a nearly flawless process. Biometrics, cryptographic hashing, encrypted journals. But there is one final hurdle.

SPEAKER_03 11:58

Getting a foreign government to recognize a digital U.S. notarization.

SPEAKER_02 12:02

Right. The Spanish government doesn't care about Florida's cryptography laws.

SPEAKER_03 12:05

Enter the Hague Apostol Convention of 1961. Trevor Burrus, Jr.

SPEAKER_02 12:08

The Apostle. Which historically is incredibly tedious. You mail a paper to the Secretary of State, they attach a physical certificate with a rivet, and then foreign nations accept it.

SPEAKER_03 12:17

But you can't physically rivet a certificate to a PDF.

SPEAKER_02 12:20

Right. So how do they bridge that gap?

SPEAKER_03 12:22

Integrated Apostol Services. The digitally notarized document is transmitted directly to the Secretary of State electronically.

SPEAKER_02 12:29

So the signer doesn't have to print anything or go to the post office.

SPEAKER_03 12:32

It's instant. The state mathematically authenticates the digital signature, issues the apostle electronically, and the service provider couriers it to the Foreign Authority. It's a truly borderless, highly resilient infrastructure.

SPEAKER_02 12:52

All right, before we wrap up today's topics, it's time for our favorite segment.

SPEAKER_03 12:57

Ah, yes. Good question. What would you do?

SPEAKER_02 12:59

Exactly. We've got five quick fire scenarios from our listeners. I'll read the situation and you give us the experienced high-level verdict. Ready?

SPEAKER_03 13:08

Let's do it.

SPEAKER_02 13:09

Okay. First up is Nora from Illinois. She says she received a subpoena demanding she hand over her notary journal for a transaction she performed last year. Does she have to comply?

SPEAKER_03 13:19

Oh, absolutely. Nora, you cannot ignore a subpoena. Your journal is a public record, and under a lawful subpoena, you are legally required to provide those specific entries, but only provide what is explicitly asked for in the subpoena.

SPEAKER_02 13:32

Good advice. Next is Elias from Arizona. He says a longtime client asked him to notarize a contract today, but put yesterday's date on the notarial certificate because the deadline was missed.

SPEAKER_03 13:44

Elias, do not do that. That is backdating and it is outright fraud. You can only record the exact date you actually witnessed the signature. Period. Never compromise your commission for a client's mistake.

SPEAKER_02 13:56

Yep. Huge no-no. All right. Third is Hazel from New York. She's doing a remote online notarization for someone physically located in Florida, but Hazel is sitting in her office in New York. What does she list as the venue on the certificate?

SPEAKER_03 14:10

The venue is always where the notary is physically located at the time of the notarization. So Hazel, your venue is New York, specifically the county you are sitting in, regardless of where the signer is zooming in from.

SPEAKER_02 14:21

Clear and simple. Number four, Sebastian from California. His spouse needs a document notarized for a business loan, and they're asking him to just quickly stamp it at the kitchen table.

SPEAKER_03 14:30

Sebastian, absolutely not. That is a direct conflict of interest. Even if your state law doesn't explicitly mention spouses, you cannot notarize a document where you might have a direct financial or beneficial interest. Send your spouse to a different impartial notary.

SPEAKER_02 14:48

Finally, Luna from Pennsylvania. She's in the middle of a Raw in session, and the ID verification software flags the signer's driver's license as highly suspicious. What does she do?

SPEAKER_03 14:59

Lena, you halt the transaction immediately. If the credential analysis fails or flags the ID as a fake, you must refuse the notarization. And crucially, document the refusal and the exact reason in your electronic journal.

SPEAKER_02 15:12

Excellent. Thank you for those answers. Listeners, we hope that helps you navigate those tricky situations.

SPEAKER_03 15:17

Definitely. And you know, looking back at everything we discussed today regarding global RON, it really forces us to consider a highly provocative question.

SPEAKER_02 15:24

About the future of identity, right?

SPEAKER_03 15:25

Exactly. Think about the implications. If a user has been rigorously validated through forensic credential analysis, subsurface light reflection, and facial matching.

SPEAKER_02 15:33

Their identity is proven with cryptographic certainty.

SPEAKER_03 15:36

Right. They are a fully verified entity, which leads to the concept of reusable identity.

SPEAKER_02 15:42

Wow. So notaries could evolve beyond just witnessing documents.

SPEAKER_03 15:46

They could become the ultimate trusted gatekeepers of our global digital identities. If you prove who you are to a notary once, you could leverage that verified identity for all future high-stakes online transactions.

SPEAKER_02 15:59

That is a massive paradigm shift. The universal key to securely proving who you are to the rest of the world.

SPEAKER_03 16:06

It's an entirely new frontier of cryptographic trust.

SPEAKER_02 16:10

We will leave you to think about the implications of that reusable identity. And hey, email your questions to Derek at Dereksproll.com. We will try to answer as soon as possible at the end of our shows.

SPEAKER_03 16:20

A big thank you to exec producer Derek Sproul, lead writer Marilyn Lee Trotter, graphics by Eddie Montez Travis, music by Thomas Bynum.

SPEAKER_02 16:29

And produced by Magnificent Works Business Solutions.

SPEAKER_03 16:31

Don't just be listeners of the knowledge, be doers of the knowledge.

SPEAKER_02 16:34

This is notary knowledge. Until next time.

SPEAKER_00 16:47

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