An information processing apparatus for collecting apparatus data from an apparatus connected through a network and sending the apparatus data to a server connected through the network includes a recording unit storing a secret key and a public key certificate which are encrypted by key data and commonly distributed; an obtaining unit for obtaining, from the information processing apparatus, individual identification data by which the information processing apparatus can be uniquely identified, sending a request to provide the predetermined key data through the network to the server by specifying the individual identification data, and receiving the key data encrypted by the individual identification data from the server; and a decoder for obtaining the individual identification data from the information processing apparatus, decoding the key data by using the individual identification data, and decoding the common public key certificate and the secret key by using the decoded key data.