A comparative analysis of image steganography based on DCT algorithm and steganography tool to hide nuclear reactors confidential information

Abstract Steganography is the practice of concealing the communication existence by hiding the traveled message in cover media. This paper aims to study Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) based steganography Using DC components for hiding secret bits sequentially in Least significant Bits (LSBs) (1-LSB & 2-LSB). Likewise, using low and middle frequencies to analyze their performance using PSNR (Peak Signal to Noise Ratio) and MSE (Mean Square Error). The findings indicate that the middle frequency has the larger hiding capacity and relatively better PSNR and MSE. Hence, a proposed steganographic tool based on DCT is implemented to hide confidential information about a nuclear reactor, using the sequential embedding method in the middle frequency. The findings indicate that the proposed tool supplies a relatively high embedding capacity with no visual distortion in the resultant image, whereas, enhance the security and maintains the correctness of the hidden data.

[1]  Shamim Ahmed Laskar,et al.  STEGANOGRAPHY BASED ON RANDOM PIXEL SELECTION FOR EFFICIENT DATA HIDING , 2013 .

[2]  K.B. Raja,et al.  A Secure Image Steganography using LSB, DCT and Compression Techniques on Raw Images , 2005, 2005 3rd International Conference on Intelligent Sensing and Information Processing.

[3]  Akanksha Kaushal,et al.  Secured Image Steganography using Different Transform Domain , 2013 .

[4]  C. Chantrapornchai,et al.  On the comparison of digital image steganography algorithm based on DCT and wavelet , 2013, 2013 International Computer Science and Engineering Conference (ICSEC).

[5]  Sahar A. ElRahman.  A Comprehensive Image Steganography Tool using LSB Scheme , 2015 .

[6]  Hedieh Sajedi,et al.  Cover Selection Steganography Method Based on Similarity of Image Blocks , 2008, 2008 IEEE 8th International Conference on Computer and Information Technology Workshops.

[7]  U. Rajendra Acharya,et al.  Compact storage of medical images with patient information , 2001, IEEE Transactions on Information Technology in Biomedicine.

[8]  Nitin Jain,et al.  Image Steganography Using LSB and Edge - Detection Technique , 2012 .

[9]  Levent Sevgi,et al.  Numerical Fourier Transforms: DFT and FFT , 2007, IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine.

[10]  Al-Sakib Khan Pathan,et al.  Mix column transform based on irreducible polynomial mathematics for color image steganography: A novel approach , 2014, Comput. Electr. Eng..

[11]  Ross J. Anderson,et al.  On the limits of steganography , 1998, IEEE J. Sel. Areas Commun..

[12]  D. Artz,et al.  Digital steganography: hiding data within data , 2001 .

[13]  Niels Provos,et al.  Hide and Seek: An Introduction to Steganography , 2003, IEEE Secur. Priv..

[14]  Markus G. Kuhn,et al.  Information hiding-a survey , 1999, Proc. IEEE.

[15]  Mohamed A. El-Dosuky,et al.  Jpeg Image Compression Using Discrete Cosine Transform - A Survey , 2014, ArXiv.

[16]  Li Fan,et al.  An extended matrix encoding algorithm for steganography of high embedding efficiency , 2011, Comput. Electr. Eng..

[17]  Hardikkumar V. Desai.  Steganography, Cryptography, Watermarking: A Comparative Study , 2012 .

[18]  John Bosco Balaguru Rayappan,et al.  Pixel Indicates, Standard Deviates: A Way for Random Image Steganography , 2013 .

[19]  Sushil Kumar,et al.  A Steganographic Technique for JPEG Using Modified Quantization Table , 2014 .

[20]  Chin-Chen Chang,et al.  A steganographic method based upon JPEG and quantization table modification , 2002, Inf. Sci..

[21]  Deepika Bansal,et al.  An Improved DCT based Steganography Technique , 2014 .

[22]  Ekta Walia,et al.  An Analysis of LSB & DCT based Steganography , 2010 .

[23]  Sushil Jajodia,et al.  Exploring steganography: Seeing the unseen , 1998 .

[24]  Andreas Westfeld,et al.  F5-A Steganographic Algorithm , 2001, Information Hiding.

[25]  Frank Y. Shih.  Multimedia security : watermarking, steganography, and forensics , 2012 .