Securing and Hiding Secret Message in Image using XOR Transposition Encryption and LSB Method

Abstract

The popular LSB technique is used in steganography techniques on spatial domains. This technique has many advantages in terms of imperceptibility and payload. Except in the case of security, the LSB technique is very weak because it is very simple and predictable. This study combines LSB steganography techniques and transposition XOR encryption techniques with the aim of increasing the security of embedded messages. Before the embedded message is encrypted with a transposition encryption algorithm and embedded with an XOR operation based on the key on the largest bit of the Host image. In the process of testing text messages with a size of 1 kB, 2 kB, and 4 kB pinned. The test results indicate that the security of the message is getting stronger without reducing the advantages of LSB techniques, namely imperceptibility and payload. All messages can also be extracted and decrypted perfectly, as evidenced by the CER value = 0.