Patent ID: 8384933

Claim:
An image forming apparatus comprising: a scanner scanning a document to obtain scan data; an insertion unit inserting advertisement data into said scan data; a specification unit specifying a forwarding destination of said scan data; a transfer unit transferring said scan data to said forwarding destination; a determination unit determining whether said specified forwarding destination is a forwarding destination allowing a user to select whether said advertisement data can be inserted into said scan data; a selection unit accepting a selection of whether insertion of said advertisement data into said scan data is allowed or not from the user, when said determination unit determines that said specified forwarding destination is a forwarding destination allowing a user to select whether said advertisement data can be inserted into said scan data; and a controller controlling insertion of said advertisement data by said insertion unit and transfer by said transfer unit, wherein said controller causes said insertion unit to perform a processing for inserting said advertisement data into said scan data and causes said transfer unit to transfer said scan data inserted with said advertisement data to said forwarding destination, when a forwarding destination that does not allow a user to select whether said advertisement data can be inserted into said scan data is specified, or when a forwarding destination that allows a user to select whether said advertisement data can be inserted into said scan data is specified and insertion of said advertisement data into said scan data is allowed by the user, and said controller causes said insertion unit not to perform the processing for inserting said advertisement data into said scan data and causes said transfer unit to transfer to said forwarding destination said scan data and said advertisement data in association with each other, when a forwarding destination that allows a user to select whether said advertisement data can be inserted into said scan data is specified, and insertion of said advertisement data into said scan data was not allowed by the user.