Public Algorithm in Reversible Data Hiding

Reversible data hiding (RDH) schemes provide some capacities in the host image to embed message so that message and the host image can respectively be extracted and restored at the destination with no distortion. This paper presents an encryption procedure that can be combined with a RDH algorithm to improve the security of communication even if the RDH algorithm is disclosed to the public. Referring as the public algorithm in RDH, our algorithm can embed message in a reversible way based on stream cipher. The stream may be generated using an encryption algorithm with an input key that can be easily updated. The recipient at the destination needs the key to extract the message. Experimental results confirm that the proposed public algorithm does not affect marked image quality and guaranty reversibility.