Towards an Image Encryption Scheme with Content-Based Image Retrieval Properties

In this paper we introduce a new secure cryptographic scheme, named IES-CBIR, specifically designed for images and their outsourced storage and retrieval in large private image repositories. Our solution enables both encrypted storage and querying using Content Based Image Retrieval (CBIR), while preserving privacy. We have implemented a prototype system around the proposed scheme, and experimentally analyzed its performance when compared to similar proposals for privacy-preserving image retrieval. Our results show that IES-CBIR allows more efficient operations than existing proposals, both in terms of time and space overheads, while enabling less restrictive application scenarios.