FPGA based Data Hiding through Steganography

Nowadays, the information security has been the key factor in communications, computer systems, electronic commerce and data sharing. One of the well-known methods for procuring the security of shared information using carrier files is steganography. The carrier file can be discrete such as image, text, audio and video etc. Digital images are the most commonly used format among those due to the high capacity and availability frequency. The hidden data is stored in an indistinct carrier in image steganography, i.e the digital image is used as a cover image to mask the secret message known as stego image. Cryptography can be then adapted for increasing the security of the stego image. A zig-zag MSB-LSB slicing based steganographic algorithm is proposed in this paper for concealing a secret image in a cover image. Power report and device utilization summary of the algorithm is calculated and the output is demonstrated on the VGA screen using BASYS3 Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA).

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High-Capacity Image Steganography Algorithm Based on Image Style Transfer

Security and Communication Networks ◽

10.1155/2021/4179340 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2021 ◽

pp. 1-14

Author(s):

Xinliang Bi ◽

Xiaoyuan Yang ◽

Chao Wang ◽

Jia Liu

Keyword(s):

High Capacity ◽

Image Features ◽

Image Steganography ◽

Cover Image ◽

Secret Message ◽

The Internet ◽

Stego Image ◽

Style Transfer ◽

Secret Image ◽

Secret Information

Steganography is a technique for publicly transmitting secret information through a cover. Most of the existing steganography algorithms are based on modifying the cover image, generating a stego image that is very similar to the cover image but has different pixel values, or establishing a mapping relationship between the stego image and the secret message. Attackers will discover the existence of secret communications from these modifications or differences. In order to solve this problem, we propose a steganography algorithm ISTNet based on image style transfer, which can convert a cover image into another stego image with a completely different style. We have improved the decoder so that the secret image features can be fused with style features in a variety of sizes to improve the accuracy of secret image extraction. The algorithm has the functions of image steganography and image style transfer at the same time, and the images it generates are both stego images and stylized images. Attackers will pay more attention to the style transfer side of the algorithm, but it is difficult to find the steganography side. Experiments show that our algorithm effectively increases the steganography capacity from 0.06 bpp to 8 bpp, and the generated stylized images are not significantly different from the stylized images on the Internet.

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Information Hiding Based on Histogram and Pixel Pattern

Journal of Cyber Security and Mobility ◽

10.13052/2245-1439.642 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Ari Moesriami Barmawi ◽

Deden Pradeka

Keyword(s):

Information Hiding ◽

Information Exchange ◽

High Capacity ◽

Cover Image ◽

Secret Message ◽

Embedding Capacity ◽

Stego Image ◽

Image Histogram ◽

Pixel Value ◽

Value Changes

Recently, information exchange using internet is increasing, such that information security is necessary for securing confidential information because it is possible to eavesdrop the information. There are several methods for securing the exchanged information such as was proposed by Rejani et al. Rejani’s method can be noiseless in low capacity but noisy in high capacity. In the case of high capacity, it will raise suspicion. This research proposed a method based on histogram and pixel pattern for keeping the stego image noiseless while still keeping the capacity high. Secret information can be embedded into the cover by evaluating the histogram and map the characters used in the secret message to the consecutive intensity in the cover image histogram. The map of the characters is sent to the recipient securely. Using the proposed method there is no pixel value changes during the embedding process. Based on the result of the experiments, it is shown that in noiseless condition, the proposed method has higher embedding capacity than Rejani’s especially when using cover image with sizes larger than 128 × 128. Thus, in noiseless condition the embedding capacity using the proposed method is higher than Rejani’s method in noiseless condition.

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Embedded FPGA Design for Optimal Pixel Adjustment Process of Image Steganography

Mathematical Problems in Engineering ◽

10.1155/2018/5216029 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2018 ◽

pp. 1-8

Author(s):

Chiung-Wei Huang ◽

Changmin Chou ◽

Yu-Che Chiu ◽

Cheng-Yuan Chang

Keyword(s):

Image Steganography ◽

Cover Image ◽

Parallel Structure ◽

Secret Message ◽

Adjustment Process ◽

Fpga Design ◽

Stego Image ◽

Field Programmable ◽

Speed Up ◽

Hardware Processing

We propose a prototype of field programmable gate array (FPGA) implementation for optimal pixel adjustment process (OPAP) algorithm of image steganography. In the proposed scheme, the cover image and the secret message are transmitted from a personal computer (PC) to an FPGA board using RS232 interface for hardware processing. We firstly embed k-bit secret message into each pixel of the cover image by the last-significant-bit (LSB) substitution method, followed by executing associated OPAP calculations to construct a stego pixel. After all pixels of the cover image have been embedded, a stego image is created and transmitted from FPGA back to the PC and stored in the PC. Moreover, we have extended the basic pixel-wise structure to a parallel structure which can fully use the hardware devices to speed up the embedding process and embed several bits of secret message at the same time. Through parallel mechanism of the hardware based design, the data hiding process can be completed in few clock cycles to produce steganography outcome. Experimental results show the effectiveness and correctness of the proposed scheme.

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Knight Tour for Image Steganography Technique

International Journal of Engineering and Advanced Technology - Regular Issue ◽

10.35940/ijeat.f8736.109119 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 1610-1613

Keyword(s):

Growth Rate ◽

Data Hiding ◽

Information Hiding ◽

High Capacity ◽

Image Steganography ◽

Cover Image ◽

The Internet ◽

Sensitive Information ◽

Image File ◽

Ascii Code

The growth rate of the Internet is exceeding that of any previous technology. As the Internet has become the major medium for transferring sensitive information, the security of the transferred message has now become the utmost priority. To ensure the security of the transmitted data, Image steganography has emerged out as an eminent tool of information hiding. The frequency of availability of image file is high and provides high capacity. In this paper, a method of secure data hiding in image is proposed that uses knight tour positions and further 8-queen positions in 8*8 pixel blocks.The cover image is divided into 8*8 pixel blocks and pixels are selected from each block corresponding to the positions of Knight in 8*8 chessboard starting from different pixel positions. 8-pixel values are selected from alternate knight position. Selected pixels values converted to 8-bit ASCII code and result in 8* 8 bit matrix. 8-Queen’s solution on 8*8 chessboard is applied on 8*8 bit matrix. The bits selected from 8-Queens positions and compared with 8-bit ASCII code of message characters. The proposed algorithm changes the LSB of only some of the pixels based on the above comparison. Based on parameters like PSNR and MSE the efficiency of the method is checked after implementation. Then the comparison done with some already proposed techniques. This is how, image steganography showed interesting and promising results when compared with other techniques.

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High-Payload Data-Hiding Method for AMBTC Decompressed Images

Entropy ◽

10.3390/e22020145 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 22 (2) ◽

pp. 145

Author(s):

Jung-Yao Yeh ◽

Chih-Cheng Chen ◽

Po-Liang Liu ◽

Ying-Hsuan Huang

Keyword(s):

Data Hiding ◽

High Capacity ◽

Cover Image ◽

Secret Data ◽

Perceptual Distortion ◽

Hiding Capacity ◽

High Data ◽

Capacity Data ◽

High Payload ◽

Better Than

Data hiding is the art of embedding data into a cover image without any perceptual distortion of the cover image. Moreover, data hiding is a very crucial research topic in information security because it can be used for various applications. In this study, we proposed a high-capacity data-hiding scheme for absolute moment block truncation coding (AMBTC) decompressed images. We statistically analyzed the composition of the secret data string and developed a unique encoding and decoding dictionary search for adjusting pixel values. The dictionary was used in the embedding and extraction stages. The dictionary provides high data-hiding capacity because the secret data was compressed using dictionary-based coding. The experimental results of this study reveal that the proposed scheme is better than the existing schemes, with respect to the data-hiding capacity and visual quality.

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An Advanced Reversible Data Hiding Algorithm Using Local Similarity, Curved Surface Characteristics, and Edge Characteristics in Images

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app10030836 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (3) ◽

pp. 836 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Soo-Mok Jung ◽

Byung-Won On

Keyword(s):

Data Hiding ◽

Reversible Data Hiding ◽

Image Watermarking ◽

Surface Characteristics ◽

Cover Image ◽

Curved Surface ◽

Local Similarity ◽

Stego Image ◽

Confidential Data ◽

The Difference

In this paper, we proposed methods to accurately predict pixel values by effectively using local similarity, curved surface characteristics, and edge characteristics present in an image. Furthermore, to hide more confidential data in a cover image using the prediction image composed of precisely predicted pixel values, we proposed an effective data hiding technique that applied the prediction image to the conventional reversible data hiding technique. Precise prediction of pixel values greatly increases the frequency at the peak point in the histogram of the difference sequence generated using the cover and prediction images. This considerably increases the amount of confidential data that can be hidden in the cover image. The proposed reversible data hiding algorithm (ARDHA) can hide up to 24.5% more confidential data than the existing algorithm. Moreover, it is not possible to determine the presence of hidden confidential data in stego-images, as they possess excellent visual quality. The confidential data can be extracted from the stego-image without loss, and the original cover image can be restored from the stego-image without distortion. Therefore, the proposed algorithm can be effectively used in digital image watermarking, military, and medical applications.

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A Joint Encryption and Reversible Data Hiding Scheme Based on Integer-DWT and Arnold Map Permutation

Journal of Applied Mathematics ◽

10.1155/2014/861782 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 2014 ◽

pp. 1-12 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Shun Zhang ◽

Tiegang Gao ◽

Guorui Sheng

Keyword(s):

Frequency Domain ◽

Data Hiding ◽

Reversible Data Hiding ◽

Cover Image ◽

Discrete Wavelet ◽

Original Image ◽

Histogram Modification ◽

Encrypted Image ◽

Hidden Data ◽

Arnold Map

A joint encryption and reversible data hiding (joint encryption-RDH) scheme is proposed in this paper. The cover image is transformed to the frequency domain with integer discrete wavelet transform (integer DWT) for the encryption and data hiding. Additional data is hidden into the permuted middle (LH, HL) and high (HH) frequency subbands of integer DWT coefficients with a histogram modification based method. A combination of permutations both in the frequency domain and in the spatial domain is imposed for the encryption. In the receiving end, the encrypted image with hidden data can be decrypted to the image with hidden data, which is similar to the original image without hidden data, by only using the encryption key; if someone has both the data hiding key and the encryption key, he can both extract the hidden data and reversibly recover the original image. Experimental results demonstrate that, compared with existing joint encryption-RDH schemes, the proposed scheme has gained larger embedding capacity, and the distribution of the encrypted image with data hidden has a random like behavior. It can also achieve the lossless restoration of the cover image.

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Two-Bit Embedding Histogram-Prediction-Error Based Reversible Data Hiding for Medical Images with Smooth Area

Computers ◽

10.3390/computers10110152 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (11) ◽

pp. 152

Author(s):

Ching-Yu Yang ◽

Ja-Ling Wu

Keyword(s):

Data Hiding ◽

Prediction Error ◽

Reversible Data Hiding ◽

Medical Images ◽

High Capacity ◽

Personal Privacy ◽

Hiding Capacity ◽

X Ray ◽

Magnetic Resonance Imaging Mri ◽

Hidden Data

During medical treatment, personal privacy is involved and must be protected. Healthcare institutions have to keep medical images or health information secret unless they have permission from the data owner to disclose them. Reversible data hiding (RDH) is a technique that embeds metadata into an image and can be recovered without any distortion after the hidden data have been extracted. This work aims to develop a fully reversible two-bit embedding RDH algorithm with a large hiding capacity for medical images. Medical images can be partitioned into regions of interest (ROI) and regions of noninterest (RONI). ROI is informative with semantic meanings essential for clinical applications and diagnosis and cannot tolerate subtle changes. Therefore, we utilize histogram shifting and prediction error to embed metadata into RONI. In addition, our embedding algorithm minimizes the side effect to ROI as much as possible. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed approach, we benchmarked three types of medical images in DICOM format, namely X-ray photography (X-ray), computer tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Experimental results show that most of the hidden data have been embedded in RONI, and the performance achieves high capacity and leaves less visible distortion to ROIs.

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Reversible data hiding method based on pixel expansion and homomorphic encryption

Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems ◽

10.3233/jifs-191478 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 39 (3) ◽

pp. 2977-2990

Author(s):

R. Anushiadevi ◽

Padmapriya Praveenkumar ◽

John Bosco Balaguru Rayappan ◽

Rengarajan Amirtharajan

Keyword(s):

Image Quality ◽

Data Hiding ◽

Reversible Data Hiding ◽

Signal To Noise Ratio ◽

Homomorphic Encryption ◽

Secret Message ◽

Pixel Expansion ◽

Stego Image ◽

Encrypted Image ◽

Location Map

Digital image steganography algorithms usually suffer from a lossy restoration of the cover content after extraction of a secret message. When a cover object and confidential information are both utilised, the reversible property of the cover is inevitable. With this objective, several reversible data hiding (RDH) algorithms are available in the literature. Conversely, because both are diametrically related parameters, existing RDH algorithms focus on either a good embedding capacity (EC) or better stego-image quality. In this paper, a pixel expansion reversible data hiding (PE-RDH) method with a high EC and good stego-image quality are proposed. The proposed PE-RDH method was based on three typical RDH schemes, namely difference expansion, histogram shifting, and pixel value ordering. The PE-RDH method has an average EC of 0.75 bpp, with an average peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) of 30.89 dB. It offers 100% recovery of the original image and confidential hidden messages. To protect secret as well as cover the proposed PE-RDH is also implemented on the encrypted image by using homomorphic encryption. The strength of the proposed method on the encrypted image was verified based on a comparison with several existing methods, and the approach achieved better results than these methods in terms of its EC, location map size and imperceptibility of directly decrypted images.

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A new encrypted method in image steganography

Indonesian Journal of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science ◽

10.11591/ijeecs.v14.i3.pp1412-1419 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 14 (3) ◽

pp. 1412 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Sabyasachi Pramanik ◽

R P Singh ◽

Ramkrishna Ghosh

Keyword(s):

Data Hiding ◽

Image Steganography ◽

Cover Image ◽

Human Response ◽

Stego Image ◽

Response Test ◽

Confidential Data

Steganography is data hiding technique in internet. Here we send CAPTCHA codes within a cover image using Image steganography. CAPTCHA are the crazy codes. They are used in human response test. The word is actually an acronym for: "Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart". It is a type of challenge–response test used in computing to determine whether or not the user is a human. Websites implement CAPTCHA codes into their registration processes due to spam. This is the utility of CAPTCHA codes. Here we generate CAPTCHA codes and later send them in an encrypted version. So, actually CAPTCHA codes are embedded into cover image with an encrypted form resulting stego image and thus attackers cannot fetch the actual CAPTCHA resulting in a secured transmission of confidential data using image steganography.

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