Elliptic Curve Cryptography Multi Secret Sharing Framework for Secure Communication with Modified LSB Embedding

Currently, there are many obstacles associated with the secure transmission of confidential images across unprotected networks (such as the threat of interception by unauthorized users). The most commonly utilized types of techniques for victimizing these problems are traditional visual cryptography and reversible data hiding. However, when taking a closer look at those methods, it becomes clear that they are not capable of securely transmitting multiple secret images at once. They also tend to be computationally intensive, and they can also reduce an image’s overall quality. To solve the problems associated with traditional methods (e.g., inability to secure multiple secret images, high cost associated with computation, and loss of image quality), we will develop a multi-secret image transmission system using elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) in conjunction with a modified least significant bit (LSB) technique to enable the secure (confidential) transmission of an image that contains several different secret images simultaneously, while still retaining the original size and quality of the image. Specifically, in our proposed system, each of the secret images will first be embedded into a cover image using a modified LSB technique. Next, the modified cover image will be broken down into several different ‘shares’ of the secret image (i.e., an n-out-of-n secret share system) before each of those shares is encrypted using ECC. Therefore, having only 1 share of the total number of shares will not allow the recovery of enough information to reconstruct the original secret image (if you will), so that no single share has any independently meaningful information to reveal. Through the experimental validation of the proposed system, the results (security, efficiency, and robustness) will be superior to those of previously developed traditional methods of transmitting multiple secret images using LSB or visual cryptography.