Search Results (12)

Generative linguistic steganography aims to produce texts that remain both perceptually and statistically imperceptible. The existing embedding algorithms often suffer from imbalanced candidate selection, where high-probability words are overlooked and low-probability words dominate, leading to reduced coherence and fluency. We introduce a character-based diffusion embedding algorithm (CDEA) that uniquely leverages character-level statistics and a power-law-inspired grouping strategy to better balance candidate word selection. Unlike prior methods, the proposed CDEA explicitly prioritizes high-probability candidates, thereby improving both semantic consistency and text naturalness. When combined with XLNet, it effectively generates longer sensitive sequences while preserving quality. The experimental results showed that CDEA not only produces steganographic texts with higher imperceptibility and fluency but also achieves stronger resistance to steganalysis compared with the existing approaches. Future work will be to enhance statistical imperceptibility, integrate CDEA with larger language models such as GPT-5, and extend applications to cross-lingual, multimodal, and practical IoT or blockchain communication scenarios. Full article

Generative steganographic text covertly transmits hidden information through readable text that is unrelated to the message. Existing AI-based linguistic steganography primarily focuses on improving text quality to evade detection and therefore only addresses passive attacks. Active attacks, such as text tampering, can disrupt the symmetry between encoding and decoding, which in turn prevents accurate extraction of hidden information. To investigate these threats, we construct two attack models: the in-domain synonym substitution attack (ISSA) and the out-of-domain random tampering attack (ODRTA), with ODRTA further divided into continuous (CODRTA) and discontinuous (DODRTA) types. To enhance robustness, we propose a proactive adaptive-clustering defense against ISSA, and, for CODRTA and DODRTA, a post-hoc repair mechanism based on context-oriented search and the determinism of text generation. Experimental results demonstrate that these mechanisms effectively counter all attack types and significantly improve the integrity and usability of hidden information. The main limitation of our approach is the relatively high computational cost of defending against ISSA. Future work will focus on improving efficiency and expanding practical applicability. Full article

This paper proposes a hybrid model that combines convolutional neural networks with natural language processing techniques for least significant bit-based steganography detection in grayscale digital images. The proposed approach identifies hidden messages by analyzing subtle alterations in the least significant bits and validates the linguistic coherence of the extracted content using a semantic filter implemented with spaCy. The system is trained and evaluated on datasets ranging from 5000 to 12,500 images per class, consistently using an 80% training and 20% validation partition. As a result, the model achieves a maximum accuracy and precision of 99.96%, outperforming recognized architectures such as Xu-Net, Yedroudj-Net, and SRNet. Unlike traditional methods, the model reduces false positives by discarding statistically suspicious but semantically incoherent outputs, which is essential in forensic contexts. Full article

Linguistic steganography can be utilized to establish covert communication channels on social media platforms, thus facilitating the dissemination of illegal messages, seriously compromising cyberspace security. Synonym substitution-based linguistic steganography methods have garnered considerable attention due to their simplicity and strong imperceptibility. Existing linguistic steganalysis methods have not achieved excellent detection performance for the aforementioned type of linguistic steganography. In this paper, based on the idea of focusing on accumulated differences, we propose a two-stage synonym substitution-based linguistic steganalysis method that does not require a synonym database and can effectively detect texts with very low embedding rates. Experimental results demonstrate that this method achieves an average detection accuracy 2.4% higher than the comparative method. Full article

Modern linguistic steganography faces the fundamental challenge of balancing embedding capacity with detection resistance, particularly against advanced AI-based steganalysis. This paper presents DeepStego, a novel steganographic system leveraging GPT-4-omni’s language modeling capabilities for secure information hiding in text. Our approach combines dynamic synonym generation with semantic-aware embedding to achieve superior detection resistance while maintaining text naturalness. Through comprehensive experimentation, DeepStego demonstrates significantly lower detection rates compared to existing methods across multiple state-of-the-art steganalysis techniques. DeepStego supports higher embedding capacities while maintaining strong detection resistance and semantic coherence. The system shows superior scalability compared to existing methods. Our evaluation demonstrates perfect message recovery accuracy and significant improvements in text quality preservation compared to competing approaches. These results establish DeepStego as a significant advancement in practical steganographic applications, particularly suitable for scenarios requiring secure covert communication with high embedding capacity. Full article

With the rapid development of technologies such as vision–language modeling, sharing images with corresponding descriptions has become a common means of information transfer. Studying data-hiding techniques for JPEG images can protect sensitive descriptions, such as personal information associated with them while sharing images. Therefore, research on data-hiding techniques for JPEG images is of significant importance. However, existing methods that modify discrete cosine transform (DCT) coefficients still have room for improvement in increasing their embedding capacity while minimizing file size expansion. To address this issue, this paper proposes a knowledge encapsulation method for JPEG images using a special hexagonal tessellation matrix. First, a special hexagonal tessellation matrix is constructed based on the characteristics of non-zero AC coefficients. Then, non-zero AC coefficients in JPEG images are paired to form coordinate pairs, and the data are embedded by modifying the non-zero AC coefficient pairs into the coordinates corresponding to the secret data. Experimental results demonstrate that, compared to the previously proposed JPEG image data-hiding schemes, the proposed approach achieves a higher embedding capacity, a minimal file size increase (FSI), and an acceptable peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR). Full article

As digital crime continues to rise, the preservation of digital evidence has become a critical phase in digital forensic investigations. This phase focuses on securing and maintaining the integrity of evidence for legal proceedings. Existing solutions for evidence preservation, such as centralized storage systems and cloud frameworks, present challenges related to security and collaboration. In this paper, we propose a novel framework that addresses these challenges in the preservation phase of forensics. Our framework employs a combination of advanced technologies, including the following: (1) Segmenting evidence into smaller components for improved security and manageability, (2) Utilizing steganography for covert evidence preservation, and (3) Implementing blockchain to ensure the integrity and immutability of evidence. Additionally, we incorporate Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) networks to enhance steganography in the evidence preservation process. This approach aims to provide a secure, scalable, and reliable solution for preserving digital evidence, contributing to the effectiveness of digital forensic investigations. An experiment using linguistic steganography showed that the LSTM autoencoder effectively generates coherent text from bit streams, with low perplexity and high accuracy. Our solution outperforms existing methods across multiple datasets, providing a secure and scalable approach for digital evidence preservation. Full article

Steganography is a widely used technique for concealing confidential data within images, videos, and audio. However, using text for steganography has not been sufficiently explored. Text-based steganography has the advantage of a low bandwidth overhead, making it a promising alternative for protecting sensitive information. Among languages, Arabic is known for its linguistic richness, making it ideal for text-based steganography. This paper proposes a robust, dynamic, and multi-layered steganography approach that uses text, encryption algorithms, and images. This approach utilizes Arabic diacritic features to hide limited-size and highly classified information. The algorithm uses several scenarios and is extensively tested to ensure the required level of security and user performance. The experimental results on actual data demonstrate the robustness of the proposed algorithm, with no noticeable impact on the carrier message (original text). Furthermore, no known potential attack can break the proposed algorithm, making it a promising solution for text-based steganography. Full article

Generative linguistic steganography encodes candidate words with conditional probability when generating text by language model, and then, it selects the corresponding candidate words to output according to the confidential message to be embedded, thereby generating steganographic text. The encoding techniques currently used in generative text steganography fall into two categories: fixed-length coding and variable-length coding. Because of the simplicity of coding and decoding and the small computational overhead, fixed-length coding is more suitable for resource-constrained environments. However, the conventional text steganography mode selects and outputs a word at one time step, which is highly susceptible to the influence of confidential information and thus may select words that do not match the statistical distribution of the training text, reducing the quality and concealment of the generated text. In this paper, we inherit the decoding advantages of fixed-length coding, focus on solving the problems of existing steganography methods, and propose a multi-time-step-based steganography method, which integrates multiple time steps to select words that can carry secret information and fit the statistical distribution, thus effectively improving the text quality. In the experimental part, we choose the GPT-2 language model to generate the text, and both theoretical analysis and experiments prove the effectiveness of the proposed scheme. Full article

There has been a persistent requirement for safeguarding documents and the data they contain, either in printed or electronic form. This is because the fabrication and faking of documents is prevalent globally, resulting in significant losses for individuals, societies, and industrial sectors, in addition to national security. Therefore, individuals are concerned about protecting their work and avoiding these unlawful actions. Different techniques, such as steganography, cryptography, and coding, have been deployed to protect valuable information. Steganography is an appropriate method, in which the user is able to conceal a message inside another message (cover media). Most of the research on steganography utilizes cover media, such as videos, images, and sounds. Notably, text steganography is usually not given priority because of the difficulties in identifying redundant bits in a text file. To embed information within a document, its attributes must be changed. These attributes may be non-displayed characters, spaces, resized fonts, or purposeful misspellings scattered throughout the text. However, this would be detectable by an attacker or other third party because of the minor change in the document. To address this issue, it is necessary to change the document in such a manner that the change would not be visible to the eye, but could still be decoded using a computer. In this paper, an overview of existing research in this area is provided. First, we provide basic information about text steganography and its general procedure. Next, three classes of text steganography are explained: statistical and random generation, format-based methodologies, and linguistics. The techniques related to each class are analyzed, and particularly the manner in which a unique strategy is provided for hiding secret data. Furthermore, we review the existing works in the development of approaches and algorithms related to text steganography; this review is not exhaustive, and covers research published from 2016 to 2021. This paper aims to assist fellow researchers by compiling the current methods, challenges, and future directions in this field. Full article

Protecting sensitive information transmitted via public channels is a significant issue faced by governments, militaries, organizations, and individuals. Steganography protects the secret information by concealing it in a transferred object such as video, audio, image, text, network, or DNA. As text uses low bandwidth, it is commonly used by Internet users in their daily activities, resulting a vast amount of text messages sent daily as social media posts and documents. Accordingly, text is the ideal object to be used in steganography, since hiding a secret message in a text makes it difficult for the attacker to detect the hidden message among the massive text content on the Internet. Language’s characteristics are utilized in text steganography. Despite the richness of the Arabic language in linguistic characteristics, only a few studies have been conducted in Arabic text steganography. To draw further attention to Arabic text steganography prospects, this paper reviews the classifications of these methods from its inception. For analysis, this paper presents a comprehensive study based on the key evaluation criteria (i.e., capacity, invisibility, robustness, and security). It opens new areas for further research based on the trends in this field. Full article

With the development of natural language processing, linguistic steganography has become a research hotspot in the field of information security. However, most existing linguistic steganographic methods may suffer from the low embedding capacity problem. Therefore, this paper proposes a character-level linguistic steganographic method (CLLS) to embed the secret information into characters instead of words by employing a long short-term memory (LSTM) based language model. First, the proposed method utilizes the LSTM model and large-scale corpus to construct and train a character-level text generation model. Through training, the best evaluated model is obtained as the prediction model of generating stego text. Then, we use the secret information as the control information to select the right character from predictions of the trained character-level text generation model. Thus, the secret information is hidden in the generated text as the predicted characters having different prediction probability values can be encoded into different secret bit values. For the same secret information, the generated stego texts vary with the starting strings of the text generation model, so we design a selection strategy to find the highest quality stego text from a number of candidate stego texts as the final stego text by changing the starting strings. The experimental results demonstrate that compared with other similar methods, the proposed method has the fastest running speed and highest embedding capacity. Moreover, extensive experiments are conducted to verify the effect of the number of candidate stego texts on the quality of the final stego text. The experimental results show that the quality of the final stego text increases with the number of candidate stego texts increasing, but the growth rate of the quality will slow down. Full article