Hiding and detecting messages in media signals

• US 8,055,012 B2
• Filed: 07/28/2009
• Issued: 11/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Original Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Inventors: Rhoads, Geoffrey B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Johns; Andrew W
• Application Number:
  US12/510,760
• Publication Number:
  US 20100021004A1
• Time in Patent Office: 833 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/232, 348/460, 348/461, 348/473, 348/474, 380/210, 380/287, 380/54, 381/73.1, 704/200.1, 704/273, 713/176
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/1408 by using cryptography for digital transmission H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/1235 with control of digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/341 Active cards, i.e. cards including their own processing means, e.g. including an IC or chip
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40145 Biometric identity checks
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/005 Robust watermarking, e.g. average attack or collusion attack resistant
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0057 Compression invariant watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0052 Embedding of the watermark in the frequency domain
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/253 visually
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/0032 using holograms
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/004 using digital security elements, e.g. information coded on a magnetic thread or strip
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/16 for devices exhibiting advertisements, announcements, pictures or the like
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/26 for printing, stamping, franking, typing or teleprinting apparatus ticket printing or the like apparatus G07F17/42
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/08 by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means without personal verification means G07F7/02
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/086 by passive credit-cards adapted therefor, e.g. constructive particularities to avoid counterfeiting, e.g. by inclusion of a physical or chemical security-layer for security documents G07D7/00; for the reading of record-carriers in general G06K7/00; for the design of coded credit-cards G06K19/10
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1016 Devices or methods for securing the PIN and other transaction-data, e.g. by encryption arrangements for secret communication, see H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/12 Card verification
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 19/018 Audio watermarking, i.e. embedding inaudible data in the audio signal
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00007 Time or data compression or expansion audio compression based on psychoacoustics G10L19/00; data processing for reproducing audio data at different playback speeds G10L21/04; video compression H04N19/00; data compression per se H03M7/30
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00086 Circuits for prevention of unauthorised reproduction or copying, e.g. piracy indicating unauthorised use of record carriers in general G11B23/28; scrambling for television signal recording H04N5/913; network architectures or network protocols for network security H04L63/00; cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for secret or secure communication H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00094 : involving measures which result in a restriction to authorised record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00115 : wherein the record carrier stores a unique medium identifier
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00166 : involving measures which result in a restriction to authorised contents recorded on or reproduced from a record carrier, e.g. music or software
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00181 : using a content identifier, e.g. an international standard recording code [ISRC] or a digital object identifier [DOI]
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/0021 : involving encryption or decryption of contents recorded on or reproduced from a record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00884 : involving a watermark, i.e. a barely perceptible transformation of the original data which can nevertheless be recognised by an algorithm
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00891 : embedded in audio data
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/10037 : A/D conversion, D/A conversion, sampling, slicing and digital quantisation or adjusting parameters thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/10527 : Audio or video recording; Data buffering arrangements G11B20/12 - G11B20/18 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/00014 : the compressed signal being an audio signal
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/10546 : specifically adapted for audio data
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/10555 : wherein the frequency, the amplitude, or other characteristics of the audio signal is taken into account
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/665 : using psychoacoustic properties of the ear, e.g. masking effect
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00005 : relating to image data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00037 : Detecting, i.e. determining the occurrence of a predetermined state H04N1/00031 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00079 : remotely
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32144 : embedded in the image data, i.e. enclosed or integrated in the image, e.g. watermark, super-imposed logo or stamp
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32149 : Methods relating to embedding, encoding, decoding, detection or retrieval operations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32203 : Spatial or amplitude domain methods H04N1/32309 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32208 : involving changing the magnitude of selected pixels, e.g. overlay of information or super-imposition H04N1/32219, H04N1/32224 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32251 : in multilevel data, e.g. greyscale or continuous tone data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32288 : Multiple embedding, e.g. cocktail embedding, or redundant embedding, e.g. repeating the additional information at a plurality of locations in the image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91321 : the copy protection signal being a copy protection control signal, e.g. a record inhibit signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91335 : the copy protection signal being a watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91342 : the copy protection signal being an authentication signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/9135 : by superimposing the spectrally spread copy protection signal onto the video signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3205 : of identification information, e.g. name or ID code H04N2201/3209 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3207 : of an address
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3226 : of identification information or the like, e.g. ID code, index, title, part of an image, reduced-size image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3233 : of authentication information, e.g. digital signature, watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/327 : which are undetectable to the naked eye, e.g. embedded codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3271 : Printing or stamping
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/328 : Processing of the additional information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/89 : using holographic recording H04N5/91 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/90 : on discs or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/913 : for scrambling ; for copy protection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8042 : involving data reduction
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8047 : using transform coding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8205 : involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the colour video signal
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 283/901 : Concealed data

Abstract

The present invention relates to steganographically hiding messages in media signals such as video and audio signals. In one implementation, a method of decoding an encoded media signal to extract a plural-bit auxiliary signal therefrom is provided. The media signal includes a plurality of intervals, with the plural-bit auxiliary signal being steganographically encoded in at least some of the intervals. Once encoded in the media signal the plural-bit auxiliary signal is generally imperceptible to a human observer of the encoded media signal. The encoding includes subtle changes to at least some portions of the media signal to thereby represent the plural-bit auxiliary signal. The method includes receiving the encoded media signal; and decoding the received encoded media signal to extract the plural-bit auxiliary signal therefrom. The decoding analyzes a plurality of intervals of the media signal with greater or lesser confidence in the extracted multi-bit auxiliary data signal being obtained by processing more or less intervals of the encoded media signal, respectively.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving an encoded media signal, wherein the encoded media signal includes a plurality of intervals, wherein a plural-bit auxiliary signal is steganographically encoded in at least some of the intervals, and wherein the encoding results in subtle changes to at least some portions of the media signal to thereby represent the plural-bit auxiliary signal; and

utilizing a processor of a computing device, decoding the received encoded media signal to extract the plural-bit auxiliary signal therefrom, wherein the decoding analyzes a plurality of intervals of the media signal, and wherein greater or lesser confidence in the extracted plural-bit auxiliary signal is obtained by processing more or less intervals of the encoded media signal, respectively.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the encoded media signal represents video.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the encoded media signal represents imagery.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the encoded media signal represents audio.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein a human observer observes the encoded media signal through listening.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the decoding is performed in a time domain.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising recording the plural-bit auxiliary signal for future reference.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer-readable instructions stored thereon, the computer-readable instructions comprising:

instructions to receive an encoded media signal, wherein the encoded media signal includes a plurality of intervals, wherein a plural-bit auxiliary signal is steganographically encoded in at least some of the intervals, and wherein the encoding results in subtle changes to at least some portions of the media signal to thereby represent the plural-bit auxiliary signal; and

instructions to decode the received encoded media signal to extract the plural-bit auxiliary signal therefrom, wherein the decoding analyzes a plurality of intervals of the media signal, and wherein greater or lesser confidence in the extracted plural-bit auxiliary signal is obtained by processing more or less intervals of the encoded media signal, respectively.

9. A method comprising:

obtaining an encoded media signal, wherein the encoded media signal includes a plurality of intervals, wherein plural-bit data is steganographically encoded in at least some of the intervals, and wherein the steganographic encoding results in subtle changes to at least some portions of the media signal to thereby represent the plural-bit data; and

using a processor of a computing device, decoding the obtained encoded media signal to extract the plural-bit data therefrom, wherein the decoding analyzes a plurality of intervals of the media signal, and wherein greater or lesser confidence in the extracted plural-bit data is obtained by processing more or less intervals of the encoded media signal, respectively.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the encoded media signal represents video.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the encoded media signal represents audio.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein a human observer observes the encoded media signal through listening.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the decoding is performed in a time domain.

14. A non-transitory computer readable medium having computer-readable instructions stored thereon, the computer-readable instructions comprising:

instructions to obtain an encoded media signal, wherein the encoded media signal includes a plurality of intervals, wherein plural-bit data is steganographically encoded in at least some of the intervals, and wherein the steganographic encoding results in subtle changes to at least some portions of the media signal to thereby represent the plural-bit data; and

instructions to decode the obtained encoded media signal to extract the plural-bit data therefrom, wherein the decoding analyzes a plurality of intervals of the media signal, and

wherein greater or lesser confidence in the extracted plural-bit data is obtained by processing more or less intervals of the encoded media signal, respectively.

15. A non-transitory computer readable medium having computer-readable instructions stored thereon, the computer-readable instructions comprising:

instructions to decode an excerpt of a steganographically encoded media signal to extract plural-bit auxiliary data therefrom, wherein the steganographic encoding results in subtle changes to at least some portions of the media signal to thereby represent the plural-bit auxiliary data; and

instructions to establish the excerpt to encompass more or less of the steganographically encoded media signal, so that the plural-bit auxiliary data is extracted with a greater or lesser confidence, respectively.

16. An apparatus comprising:

an input configured to receive a media signal that is steganographically encoded with plural-bit auxiliary data, wherein the steganographic encoding results in subtle changes to at least some portions of the media signal to thereby represent the plural-bit auxiliary data; and

a processor configured to decode the plural-bit auxiliary data from an excerpt of the received media signal, wherein the processor establishes the excerpt to encompass more or less of the steganographically encoded media signal, so as to yield extracted plural-bit auxiliary data of a greater or lesser confidence, respectively.

17. An apparatus comprising:

a memory configured to store an encoded media signal, wherein the encoded media signal includes a plurality of intervals, wherein a plural-bit auxiliary signal is steganographically encoded in at least some of the intervals, and wherein the encoding results in subtle changes to at least some portions of the media signal to thereby represent the plural-bit auxiliary signal; and

a processor operatively coupled to the memory and configured to decoded the received encoded media signal to extract the plural-bit auxiliary signal therefrom, wherein the decoding analyzes a plurality of intervals of the media signal, and wherein greater or lesser confidence in the extracted plural-bit auxiliary signal is obtained by processing more or less intervals of the encoded media signal, respectively.

18. A method comprising:

decoding, with a processor of a computing device, an excerpt of a steganographically encoded media signal to extract plural-bit auxiliary data therefrom, wherein the steganographic encoding results in subtle changes to at least some portions of the media signal to thereby represent the plural-bit auxiliary data; and

establishing the excerpt to encompass more or less of the steganographically encoded media signal, so that the plural-bit auxiliary data is extracted with a greater or lesser confidence, respectively.