Patent ID: 8365296

Claim:
An information processing apparatus for accessing multiple external storage media, comprising: a detection section which detects theft or loss of the information processing apparatus; a storage section having multiple storage areas for storing data; a backup management section which backs up the data stored in the multiple storage areas to one or multiple external storage media; an easiness degree recording section which records, in association with each of the multiple external storage media, an easiness degree indicating how easily a user accesses the external storage medium; an erasure priority ranking calculation section which calculates erasure priority rankings of the data stored in the multiple storage areas in a manner that an erasure priority ranking is higher as an easiness degree is higher, and records the calculated erasure priority rankings into an erasure priority ranking recording section in association with each of the multiple storage areas; and a data erasure section which erases the data stored in the multiple storage areas in accordance with the erasure priority rankings recorded in the erasure priority ranking recording section when the detection section detects theft or loss of the information processing apparatus.