METHOD FOR STEGANOGRAPHIC HIDE OF INFORMATION BASED ON CONTINUOUS WAVELET TRANSFORM

Abstract

This article discusses continuous wavelet transform as a method of steganographic embedding of confidential information into an image. The main purpose of steganography is to hide information so that the possibility of data detection is minimized. This is done by hiding the message inside the container so that outsiders are not aware of the secret’s existence. Thus, the main principle of steganography is the principle of invisibility, which is also the basis of security when using these systems to transfer information. Steganography methods are divided into two large groups: spatial and frequency. The former visually degrade the image quality by directly changing the components (pixels). The latter interact with frequency characteristics, which has the best effect on the quality of the converted image. At this point in time, one of the most common frequency methods (discrete-cosine transform) is increasingly being replaced by a wavelet transform. This method of embedding confidential information is visually less noticeable to human vision, relative to those existing at a given time.The paper presents brief theoretical information on the wavelet transform, gives the characteristics of the Haar transform, presents images demonstrating the principle of the wavelet transform. The developed algorithm for steganography based on the wavelet transform is shown. The algorithm was implemented in the Matlab environment, as well as the analysis of the results obtained using the example of a test image. Conclusions, advantages of this method, as well as recommendations for further research in this area are given.