A secure release of a job request is managed at a document processing system that has been issued a private key and a public key. In one embodiment, the job request includes a first part specifying job information that is encrypted using a symmetric key, and a second part specifying the symmetric key that is encrypted with a recipient's public key. The document processing system begins release of the job request upon receipt of the symmetric key encrypted using its public key. The document processing system uses its private key to decrypt the encrypted symmetric key. The decrypted symmetric key is then used to decrypt the first part of the job request, thereby permitting the document processing system to complete performance of the job request.