Research Proposal Handout

Prepared by Ismail Marzuki

State Islamic University of Sultan Syarif Kasim Riau - Indonesia

Proposed Research Topic: Combination of Steganography and Cryptography

Research Title: “Enhancement Capacity and Security Messages of Steganography

Uncompressed Image Using Vibrant Color and RSA Method”

Background: SujayNarayana and Gaurav Prasad (2010) explain that probably Least
Significant Bit (LSB) method is the most well-known image steganography technique.
LSB is a simple approach to embed information in a graphical image file and has
capability to hide large data in to the cover image. But it is quite unsecure from
steganalist. By this reason, many researches still explore LSB and try to make
development theory for new approaches in steganography till now. The new
steganography method comes from Gutub (2010) that using pixel indicator technique for
RGB image steganography with the base method utilized the LSB advance. It took the
advantage of 24 bits in each pixel of RGB images using the two least significant bits of
one channel to indicate existence of data in the other two channels. Gutub claimed that
his proficiency was better than just embedding data to cover by using LSB especially for
increasing the security and capacity messages. In 2011, Gutub and Parvez made a new
asserting improvement from Gutub method for the same aimed in security and capacity.
They used vibrant color image steganography, channel differences, and secret data
distribution for their method. From their paper they could show the best method for
steganography among LSB, Pixel Indicator, and Vibrant Color. This handout wants to
enlighten research to implement the vibrant color evolving and combine the RSA method
for the same purpose (enhancement capacity and security messages). In this project, I will
explore how vibrant color image can enlarge the cover image capability to hide messages
and RSA for securing the messages. The types of messages that will be secured are files
with different format file in each type such as image, document, executable, video, audio
files, and some other types file.

Purposes: This research purposes to design an application steganography which it has

ability to embed and retrieve the messages in or from cover uncompressed image file
using its vibrant color to expand the cover capability for hiding messages, and RSA
Cryptography method to increase the security of hidden messages. The application design
will be developed using Java programming language approach (Object Oriented
Programming). Actually, I have ever investigated the LSB steganography for my final
project to get my undergraduate degree in my department, and it has been published in
Journal of Computer Science ISSN: 1412-9523; Vol. 8; No. 2; pp. 137 - 151 in Indonesia.
By this research experience, I bring myself to do new research in the same field to gain
my insight and research experience in Computer Security. To improve my research
ability, I have published two other papers in National Conference Technology
Information Communication and Industry (Seminar Nasional Teknologi Informasi
Komunikasi dan Industri/ SNTIKI – 4) on Image processing.

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Scope: If this handout is appropriate, I will engage this project by getting knowledge first
from the combination study (by coursework and research program) for Master degree.
The coursework will be used for certain direction to obtain steganography, cryptography,
and other computer security advances theories (getting experience to lecture). The
research program will obtain my experience in researching. This project will be explored
for my thesis project in research program after finishing the coursework (or as minor
thesis).

Theoretical framework: I will be guided most generally by the interpretive perspective

computer security by John M Carrol (1979), Eric Cole (2003) for steganography and
cryptography conceptual, more specifically for the vibrant color by Gutub and Parvez’s
(2011) method approach, and cryptography with Java by David Hook (2005) and many
other references. For all I know Steganography is a technique to secure the
communications of data or message. Message is secured by embedding bits message into
bits carrier file. Every stegofile will be tested to get quality, capacity, security, and
robustness values. Stegofile quality can be counted by Peak Signal Noise Error (PSNR)
form. The capacity value will be taken by comparison between cover image before
messages are hidden and stegofile after messages are hidden. Then, the security value will
be known by using steganalisys application. And robustness will be gotten by editing the
visual stegofile by Image Editor.

Method:
START

INPUT MESSAGE
& COVER IMAGE
START

NO

MESSAGE < INPUT

COVER IMAGE?
STEGOFILE

YES RETRIEVE THE MESSAGE

FROM STEGOFILE
ENCRYPT MESSAGE
USING RSA METHOD

MESSAGE
CONVERT ENCRYPTED ENCRYPTED
MESSAGE TO BINARY

EXTRACT COVER IMAGE DECRYPT MESSAGE

STORE THE MESSAGE
TO RGB VALUE & FIND
INTO THE BEST VIBRANT
THE BEST VIBRANT
COLOR
COLOR

MESSAGE
STEGOFILE

FINISH FINISH

(a) (b)

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 Figure 1: (a) Embedding process, (b) Retrieving process

This project handout presents a new algorithm which Gutub and Parvez published in 2011
for color image based steganography. This algorithm adaptively determines the number
of secret message bits that each pixel of cover image can be stored based on a partition
scheme of the range of color intensity. This vibrant scheme is found to offer high capacity
and security for the cover image. All the way for embedding message to vibrant color of
cover image is described in their paper. By this handout, I try to instigate this technique
for my research master degree. In this section, figure 1 aims to show the process of
embedding messages into its cover (a) and retrieving messages from the stegofile (b).

Limitations: Actually, In the background and purposes section have been explained the
limitation for this project. These project limitations are:
1. The cover image that uses in this project is uncompressed image, Bitmap.
2. There is no any limitation for kind of message to be hidden to the cover image.
All types of digital data will be tried to be stored to the cover image.
3. This project will modify 4 least significant bits of cover image. Such as Habes
(2006) stated that by inserting more than one LSB bit, but not more than 4
bits could be used to increase the payload capacity.
4. Using Object Oriented Java Programming approach for designing the
project.

References
Carroll, John Millar. Computer Security 2nd Edition.Butterworth-HeinemannNewton,
MA, USA.1987.
Eric, Cole. Hiding in Plain Sight: Steganography and The Art of Covert
Communication. Wiley Publishing, Inc , Indiana, USA. 2003.
Gutub, Adnan Abdul-Aziz. Pixel Indicator Technique for RGB Image
Steganography.Computer Engineering.King Fahd University ofPetroleum and
Minerals (KFUPM) Saudi Arabia. 2010.
Gutub,Adnan Abdul-Aziz.,Ankeer M., Abu-Ghalioun M., Shaheen A., and Alvi A., Pixel
Indicator High Capacity Technique for RGB Image Based Steganography. WoSPA
2008 - 5th IEEE International Workshop onSignal Processing and its Applications,
University ofSharjah, Sharjah, U.A.E. 18 - 20 March. 2008.
Habes, Alkhraisat. Information Hiding in BMP Image Implementation, Analysis and
Evaluation.Saint Petersburg Institute for Informatics and Automation, Russian
Academy of Sciences, Saint Petersburg, Russia. 2006.
Hook, David. Beginning Cryptography with Java.Published byWiley Publishing, Inc.
10475 Crosspoint Boulevard, Canada, USA. 2005.
Jacobson, Ivar. Object-Oriented Software Engineering (A Use Case Driven
Approach).ACM Press, Addison-Wesley, Edinburgh Gate, England. 1992.
Jasril.,Marzuki, Ismail. Application Design to Embed Text and File to Uncompressed
File with Least Significant Bit.Journal of Computer ScienceISSN: 1412-

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 9523Vol. 8 No. 2 March 2012: 137 – 151. University of PelitaHarapan(UPH),
Indonesia. 2012.
Narayana, Sujay., Prasad, Gaurav. Two New Approaches for Secured Image
Steganography Using Cryptographic Techniques and Type Conversions. Signal &
Image Processing : An International Journal(SIPIJ) Vol.1, No.2, December. 2010.
Parvez, M.T., Gutub, Adnan Abdul-Aziz. RGB Intensity Based Variable-Bits Image
Steganography. APSCC 2008 – Proceedings of 3rd IEEE Asia-Pacific
ServicesComputing Conference. pp. 1322 – 1327. 2008.
Parvez, M.T., Gutub, Adnan Abdul-Aziz. Vibrant Color Image Steganography using
ChannelDifferences and Secret Data Distribution.Associate Researcher, Center Of
Excellence in Information Assurance (CoEIA), King SaudUniversity, Riyadh,
Saudi Arabia. 2011.