Method for registering an electronically stored digital document (A), comprising the steps of a) providing to an owning party an N version of the digital document (A) and a private ownership key, which private ownership key is a private key in an asymmetric cryptographic key pair also comprising a corresponding public ownership key; b) calculating a first digital document hash value based upon a first payload of the N version of the document (A); c) the owning party using the private ownership key to calculate, based upon the first digital document hash value, a first digital document signature of the N version of the document (A); d) in a centralized or distributed server function or database , digitally storing in an electronic digital document register not the N version of the document (A), but the first document signature as well as the public ownership key and the first document hash value; e) amending the N version of the digital document (A) by appending information to the N version of the digital document (A) to produce a N+1 version of the digital document (A); f) calculating a second digital document hash value based upon an appended payload of the N+1 version of the document (A) as well as upon said first payload; g) the owning party using said private ownership key to calculate, based upon the second digital document hash value, a second digital document signature of the N+1 version of the document (A); h) in said electronic digital document register storing not the N+1 version of the document (A), but the second document signature and the second document hash value, as well as said public ownership key or a different public ownership key of a different asymmetric cryptographic key pair also comprising a different corresponding private ownership key. a) providing to an owning party an N version of the digital document (A) and a private ownership key, which private ownership key is a private key in an asymmetric cryptographic key pair also comprising a corresponding public ownership key; b) calculating a first digital document hash value based upon a first payload of the N version of the document (A); c) the owning party using the private ownership key to calculate, based upon the first digital document hash value, a first digital document signature of the N version of the document (A); d) in a centralized or distributed server function or database , digitally storing in an electronic digital document register not the N version of the document (A), but the first document signature as well as the public ownership key and the first document hash value; e) amending the N version of the digital document (A) by appending information to the N version of the digital document (A) to produce a N+1 version of the digital document (A); f) calculating a second digital document hash value based upon an appended payload of the N+1 version of the document (A) as well as upon said first payload; g) the owning party using said private ownership key to calculate, based upon the second digital document hash value, a second digital document signature of the N+1 version of the document (A); h) in said electronic digital document register storing not the N+1 version of the document (A), but the second document signature and the second document hash value, as well as said public ownership key or a different public ownership key of a different asymmetric cryptographic key pair also comprising a different corresponding private ownership key. <EOS>