Wireless methods and devices employing steganography

• US 20030040326A1
• Filed: 06/20/2002
• Published: 02/27/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/1996
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Original Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Inventors: Levy, Kenneth L., Rhoads, Geoffrey B.
• Application Number:
  US10/177,650
• Publication Number:
  US 20030040326A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04K 1/02 by adding a second signal to make the desired signal unintelligible
• CPC Class Codes: H04K 1/10 by using two signals transmitted simultaneously or successively

Abstract

Wireless devices and methods employ steganography to convey auxiliary data in addition to audio information. An exemplary application is a battery-powered cell phone, having, e.g., a microphone, a speaker, a modulator, an antenna, and an RF amplifier. The steganographically-encoded auxiliary data can be sent to, and/or sent from, such a device, and used for purposes including authentication, system administration, etc. The auxiliary information may include GPS or location information, date and/or time information, phone identification and user speech or voice identification.

Claims

1. In a cellular telephone including a microphone, a modulator, an antenna, and an RF amplifier, the device serving to receive audio and transmit an RF signal conveying audio modulation, an improvement comprising a steganographic embedder for hiding plural bits of auxiliary data within the audio modulation of said RF signal.

2. The telephone of claim 1 in which said plural bits comprise data identifying the cellular telephone.

3. The telephone of claim 1, further comprising a global positioning system (GPS) receiver.

4. The telephone of claim 3, wherein the plural bits comprise position data identifying the location of the telephone, wherein the position data is provided from the GPS receiver to the embedder.

5. The telephone of claim 1, wherein the plural bits comprise data identifying the time of transmission.

6. The telephone of claim 1, further comprising a voice identification module to provide voice identification data for a user'"'"'s voice.

7. The telephone of claim 6, wherein the plural bits comprise the voice identification data.

8. The telephone of claim 1, wherein the plural bits comprise a voice identifier communicated from a cell site in communication with said telephone.

9. The telephone of claim 8, wherein the voice identifier comprises encrypted data.

10. The telephone of claim 1, wherein the plural bits comprise location data of said telephone.

11. The telephone of claim 10, wherein the location data is communicated from a cell site that is in communication with said telephone.

12. The telephone of claim 11, wherein the location data comprises encrypted data.

13. A method of operating a cellular telephone, said telephone including means for transmitting and receiving wireless signals, the method characterized by altering a voice or audio signal to steganographically embed a plural-bit auxiliary data string therein, wherein transmission of the voice or audio signal by the telephone also conveys the auxiliary data string hidden therein.

14. The method of claim 13 in which the data string comprises data identifying the cellular telephone.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the telephone further comprises a global positioning system (GPS) receiver.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the data string comprises position data identifying the location of the telephone, and wherein the position data is provided by the GPS receiver.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the data string comprises data identifying at least one of date and time.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein the telephone further comprises a voice identifier module, and the voice identifier module provides a voice identifier.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the data string comprises the voice identifier.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein the data string comprises a voice identifier communicated from a cell site in communication with the cellular telephone.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the voice identifier comprises encrypted data.

22. The method of claim 13, wherein the data string comprises location data of the cellular telephone.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the location data is communicated from a cell site that is in communication with the cellular telephone.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the location data comprises encrypted data.

25. The method of claim 13, wherein the data string comprises a location of the cellular telephone, a date and time stamp, a voice identifier and a telephone identifier.

26. A method of authenticating signals from a telephone, the telephone including a transmitter for transmitting signals and a receiver for receiving signals, the method characterized by evaluating an auxiliary data string steganographically embedded in a voice signal, wherein the auxiliary data string comprises authentication data.

27. The method according to claim 26, wherein the authentication data comprises at least one of time data, position data, phone identification data and voice identification data.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein the authentication data comprises a location of the telephone, a date and time stamp, a voice identifier and a telephone identifier.