A systematic review on cover selection methods for steganography: Trend analysis, novel classification and analysis of the elements

Abstract

Cover selection is the process of selecting a suitable cover for steganography. Cover selection is crucial to maintain the steganographic characteristics performances and further avoid detection of hidden messages by eavesdroppers. Numerous existing reviews have focused mainly on the implementation and performance of steganography methods. Existing reviews have demonstrated inadequate depth of analysis and a lack of the number of articles reviewed. Thus, this article systematically reviews 34 cover selection methods for steganography in five databases including Web of Science, IEEE Xplore, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Springer. The results include a trend analysis concerning existing cover selection algorithms for steganography. This article also establishes four novel classifications for cover selection methods. Recommendations on the implementation and design for cover selection method based on each class are provided. Analysis of the elements including cover types, datasets, searching methods, evaluation metrics for searching methods, cover selection attributes and its performance evaluations are also provided. An in-depth discussion on how cover types, searching method and evaluation metrics for searching method affects the steganography characteristics are also presented. This review offers valuable insights for researchers in developing new methods and enhance steganography systems for secure data communication.