This part is an informative introduction into the following parts. It gives guidance to the following parts in order to allow an efficient usage of the provided information. Therefore Part 1 provides history, application context, market perspective and a tutorial about the basic understanding of electronic signatures.-Clause 3 provides "Terms and definitions" covering all parts of this standards. The specific parts will contain a similar section which refers to the clause of this Part 1.-Clause 4 provides "Symbols and abbreviations" covering all parts of this standards. The specific parts will contain a similar section which refers to the clause of this Part 1.-Clause 5 provides a Management Summary that describes the market context in which electronic signatures are typically-Annex A provides the algorithm identifies for all parts of the standard.-Annex B provides the algorithm identifies for all parts of the standard.-Annex C provides the build scheme for object identifiers for all parts of the standard.-Annex D "Tutorial on Signature Technology" provides a tutorial which helps the first reader to get familiar with signature technology and its relation to the society that it serves.-Annex E "Guide to the EN 419212" explains the historical and technical evolution of the ESIGN activities which did finally lead to this version of the signature standard.