Patent ID: 8355508

Claim:
An information processing system comprising plural information processing apparatuses for collecting apparatus data from a corresponding apparatus connected through a network and sending the apparatus data to a server apparatus connected through the network, each information processing apparatus comprising: a recording unit storing a first secret key and a first public key certificate which are encrypted by common key data, the first secret key, the first public key certificate, and the common key data being common to the plural information processing apparatuses; a key data obtaining unit configured to obtain, from the information processing apparatus, individual identification data uniquely identifying the information processing apparatus, send a request to provide the common key data through the network to the server apparatus by specifying the individual identification data, and receive the encrypted common key data encrypted by the individual identification data from the server apparatus; a decoding unit configured to decode the encrypted common key data by using the individual identification data, and decode the first public key certificate and the first secret key by using the decoded common key data; and a certificate obtaining unit for obtaining a second public key certificate and a second secret key, which are unique to the information processing apparatus, by cryptographic communication using the decoded first public key certificate and the decoded first secret key, wherein at least one of the second public key certificate and the second secret key includes a pass phrase, and the pass phrase is verified by comparing to the individual identification data, and when the pass phrase is the individual identification data, the individual identification data is compared to the pass phrase, and when the pass phrase is the individual identification data converted based on a predetermined rule, the individual identification data is converted based on the predetermine rule, and the converted individual identification data is compared to the pass phrase.