Application of LSB Based Steganographic Technique for 8-bit Color Images

Authors: Mamta Juneja, Parvinder S. Sandhu, Ekta Walia

Abstract:

Steganography is the process of hiding one file inside another such that others can neither identify the meaning of the embedded object, nor even recognize its existence. Current trends favor using digital image files as the cover file to hide another digital file that contains the secret message or information. One of the most common methods of implementation is Least Significant Bit Insertion, in which the least significant bit of every byte is altered to form the bit-string representing the embedded file. Altering the LSB will only cause minor changes in color, and thus is usually not noticeable to the human eye. While this technique works well for 24-bit color image files, steganography has not been as successful when using an 8-bit color image file, due to limitations in color variations and the use of a colormap. This paper presents the results of research investigating the combination of image compression and steganography. The technique developed starts with a 24-bit color bitmap file, then compresses the file by organizing and optimizing an 8-bit colormap. After the process of compression, a text message is hidden in the final, compressed image. Results indicate that the final technique has potential of being useful in the steganographic world.

Keywords: Compression, Colormap, Encryption, Steganographyand LSB Insertion.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI): doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1086191

References:

[1] B.Schneier, "Terrorists and Steganography", 24 Sep. 2001, available: http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/comment/0,5859,2814256,00.html.
[2] Y. Linde, A. Buzo, and R. M. Gray, "An Algorithm for Vector Quantizer Design," IEEE Transactions on Communications, pp. 84-95, January 1989.
[3] Andersen, R.J., Petitcolas, F.A.P., On the limits of steganography. IEEE Journal of Selected Areas in Communications, Special Issue on Copyright and Privacy Protection 16 No.4 (1998) 474´Ç¡481.
[4] Johnson, Neil F. and Jajodia, Sushil. "Steganography: Seeing the Unseen." IEEE Computer, February 1998, pp.26´Ç¡34.
[5] William Stallings; Cryptography and Network Security: Principals and Practice, Prentice Hall international, Inc.; 2002.
[6] Eric Cole ,"Hiding in Plain Sight: Steganography and the Art of Covert Communication"
[7] Gregory Kipper,"Investigator's Guide to Steganography "
[8] Stefan Katzenbeisser and Fabien, A.P. Petitcolas ," Information Hiding Techniques for Steganography and Digital Watermarking "
[9] Hiding secrets in computer files: steganography is the new invisible ink, as codes stow away on images-An article from: The Futurist by Patrick Tucker
[10] Ismail Avc─▒bas┬©, Member, IEEE, Nasir Memon,Member, IEEE, and B├╝lent Sankur, Member, "Steganalysis Using Image Quality Metrics," IEEE Transactions on Image Processing, Vol 12, No. 2,February 2003..
[11] Niels Provos and Peter Honeyman, University of Michigan, "Hide and Seek: An Introduction to Steganography" IEEE Computer Society IEEE Security &Privacy.
[12] R. Chandramouli and Nasir Memon, "Analysis of LSB Based Image Steganography Techniques", IEEE 2001.