Patent ID: 8272047

Claim:
An information processing apparatus comprising: a receiving unit that receives operation selection information selected by a user from an displayed operating screen, the operation selection information includes identification of an operation, the operation including a function or a combination of functions; a detecting unit that detects a function corresponding to the operation selection information received by the receiving unit; a memory that stores authentication requirement information en corresponding to if user authentication is required, the stored authentication requirement information including screen based authentication requirement information, for each operating screen, indicating if user authentication is required for selecting any operation associated with the displayed an operating screen, the stored authentication requirement information including function based authentication requirement information, for each function, indicating if user authentication is required for executing the function, the stored authentication requirement information including combined function based authentication requirement information, for each combination of functions, indicating if user authentication is required for executing the combination of functions; a determining unit that determines if user authentication is required, based on the authentication requirement information that is stored in the memory, when an operation is selected by a user from the displayed operating screen; a user authenticating unit that executes user authentication when the user selects an operation from the displayed operating screen for which it is determined that user authentication is required by the determining unit; and a function executing unit that executes the operation selected by the user when the user is authorized to execute the operation; the determining unit determining that user authentication is required when user authentication is set for a function included in the selected operation; the determining unit determining that user authentication is required when user authentication is set for a combination of functions that includes a function included in the selected operation; the determining unit determining that user authentication is required when user authentication is set for an operating screen that includes a function included in the selected operation or combination of functions that includes a function included in the selected operation.