Quote: "Nobody need to answer the 'how it works' question, if the answer is in plain view in the encoder/decoder.. So that's the approach any attacker would take first."
It is only in plain view when decoding if they have the key-code and the program.
I was talking about if they only have the images to go on, and can't figure it out.
Then they would need the get access to the program and then reverse engineer it, because they would not have the key-code to make it plainly visible running the program normally.
Unless the CIA snooped in my files the other day when visiting one of their websites (their Terms Of Use of the website grants them permission to view all the files on your computer when you connect to their network, without your consent because your use of that website is your acceptance of the TOU (bogus agreement IMO since that TOU is not known or available prior to accessing the site, but then again, would they really need permission to probe your files)), then I am the only one who currently has a copy of the app.
Granted of course that I have not been compromised by other hackers. ( I do not have the app on my surfing computer, and will only access Government sites from a public library in the future )
The idea is to sell this app to an interested party, who will then only distribute it to their trusted recipients who will install it on computers that are not connected to any networks.
That means that any snooper will only have the images to go on since they are the only thing transferred over a network, making it virtually impossible for them to crack the code, unless you guys prove me wrong here.
As I said, very interesting information about the appendage method, and all that is learned here (and as a result of research originated here in this thread) will be applied to improving the security measures.
I look forward to the PM solution to these images as they are now though.
Thanks again to all who are participating and sharing your knowledge about this aspect of computer science.
Quote: " I used to hide data (could be anything) inside images by using the command line winzip. The data is appended to the end of the image. The image still displays properly because readers stop looking at the data when it reaches a particular chunk header. Anything after it is ignored by the image readers. I even hid a trojan in one before back in highschool."
lol
are you trying to scare your competition away?
I can guarantee you that there are no trojans or viruses in these images.
Quote: "Now, if you have a small jpeg and it's 20mb in size, it'd kind of raise a flag."
Okay, I said earlier that I would not give comments that would be spoilers, but I have to comment on this.
The technique I am using for this example of encryption/steganography adds the text message to an image without changing its file size at all.
That is probably a spoiler for the participants of this challenge, but I am still confident that it is not enough to compromise the security of the message.
However, I was compelled to comment because this eliminates that appendage method as a possibility and stresses the flexibility of this proprietary technology.
Quote: " The SSIS system hides and recovers a message of substantial length within digital imagery while maintaining the original image size and dynamic range. "
Okay, so I guess it wasn't a spoiler since I already told you that it is a lot like the system the U.S. Army developed. (which I had no idea about when I created this)
Coding things my way since 1981 -- Currently using AppGameKit V2 Tier 1
