LSB Based Steganography Using Genetic Algorithm and Visual Cryptography for Secured Data Hiding and Transmission over Networks

Abstract

Steganography is a latest evolution of cryptography, wild variety of applications used cryptography as a part of hiding data with the help of encryption algorithm along with genetic algorithm, thus our paper is based on steganography using genetic algorithm along with visual cryptography for network. Using the Least significant bit (LSB) of the actual image, the choice of hiding data, as it has low computation complexity and high embedding capacity helps pixel values to be analyzed. Although there has been extensive researches in past but, there has been no such security for encrypted image thus in our system a security key has been provided for that particular encrypted image for hiding data to get a stego image, which actually holds the message. Genetic algorithm is used for modifying the pixel location of stego image to enhance the multilevel security and the detection of this becomes complex. Visual cryptography is used to make the shares of that modified pixel image and send it to the end user. The secret key is sent to the receiver. User who received the secret shares has to do reverse process to retrieve the image using the secret key.