Attestation

The literary meaning of the Attestation is “The act of attending the execution of a document and bearing witness to its authenticity, by signing one's name to it to affirm that it is genuine. The certification by a custodian of records that a copy of an original document is a true copy, which is demonstrated by his/her signature on the certificate. The attestation authorities for general documents in India are Notary Public, any Principal of a Secondary or Higher Secondary School or College or University, any Section Officer or Gazetted Officer of Government of India etc. but points to be noted that the above said authorities are entitled to attest the true copy of the documents. When an individual is planning to go abroad, then the individual’s original testimonials to be attested and to attest the same, Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India, has gave the power to various State’s Home Department, General  Administrative Department, Higher Education Department or Sub Divisional Magistrate, New Delhi etc.  After completion the attestation process from the above said authorities in India, the documents could be attested by the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi further it may be attested by the respective Embassy

Authentication

Authentication is the act of confirming the truth of an attribute of a datum or entity. This might involve confirming the identity of a person, tracing the origins of an artifact, ensuring that a product is what its packaging and labeling claims to be, or assuring that a computer program is a trusted one.

There are three types of techniques for doing Authentication

The first type authentication is accepting proof of identity given by a credible person who has evidence on the said identity or on the originator and the object under assessment as his artifact respectively.

The second type authentication is comparing the attributes of the object itself to what is known about objects of that origin. Attribute comparison may be vulnerable to forgery. In general, it relies on the fact that creating a forgery indistinguishable from a genuine artifact requires expert knowledge, that mistakes are easily made, or that the amount of effort required to do so is considerably greater than the amount of money that can be gained by selling the forgery. Criminal and civil penalties for fraud, forgery, and counterfeiting can reduce the incentive for falsification, depending on the risk of getting caught.

The third type authentication relies on documentation or other external affirmations. For example, the rules of evidence in criminal courts often require establishing the chain of custody of evidence presented. This can be accomplished through a written evidence log, or by testimony from the police detectives and forensics staff that handled it. Some antiques are accompanied by certificates attesting to their authenticity. External records have their own problems of forgery and perjury, and are also vulnerable to being separated from the artifact and lost.

Currency and other financial instruments commonly use the first type of authentication method. Bills, coins, and cheques incorporate hard-to-duplicate physical features, such as fine printing or engraving, distinctive feel, watermarks, and holographic imagery, which are easy for receivers to verify.

Consumer goods such as pharmaceuticals, perfume, fashion clothing can use either type of authentication method to prevent counterfeit goods from taking advantage of a popular brand's reputation (damaging the brand owner's sales and reputation). A trademark is a legally protected marking or other identifying feature which aids consumers in the identification of genuine brand-name goods