This paper proposes a high-performance covert communication scheme based on image cloud data deduplication. Firstly, it uses images as the carrier of messages and proposes to map a file to more than one bit at a time based on the difference of the mean gray value of image regions, which enhances the covertness of the communication. Then, a set of basic image library based on grouping is designed, in which the images are arranged in a specified order. The dynamic interval determination mechanism is used to achieve the randomized selection of the message carrier, and the least significant bit algorithm is used to embed auxiliary marking information unrelated to the content of the message, ensuring communication security and reliability. Finally, a synchronization mechanism based on timestamp-aligned intervals is proposed. A multi-round traversal strategy and the concept of empty data grouping are introduced to effectively use the image library, which improve the transmission efficiency of communication. Comparative analysis with research utilizing cross-user deduplication for covert transmission reveals that the proposed scheme optimizes the correlation between the number of file uploads and the message length. Futhermore, it effectively improves the comprehensive transmission rate and enhances the security and the covertness of communication.
CHEN Yanghui, TANG Xin, ZHENG Tingting, CHANG Hanzhi, ZHOU Yiteng
. High-Performance Covert Communication Scheme Based on Image Cloud Data Deduplication[J]. Journal of Applied Sciences, 2024
, 42(3)
: 457
-468
.
DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.0255-8297.2024.03.008
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