Optimization of Cross Diagonal Pixel Value Differencing and Modulus Function Steganography Using Edge Area Block Patterns

Abstract The existence of a trade-off between embedding capacity and imperceptibility is a challenge to improve the quality of steganographic images. This research proposes to cross diagonal embedding Pixel Value Differencing (PVD) and Modulus Function (MF) techniques using edge area patterns to improve embedding capacity and imperceptibility simultaneously. At the same time still, maintain a good quality of security. By implementing them into 14 public datasets, the proposed techniques are proven to increase both capacity and imperceptibility. The cross diagonal embedding PVD is responsible for increasing the embedding capacity reaching an average value of 3.18 bits per pixel (bpp), and at the same time, the implementation of edge area block patterns-based embedding is a solution of improving imperceptibility toward an average value of PSNR above 40 dB and that of SSIM above 0.98. Aside from its success in increasing the embedding capacity and the imperceptibility, the proposed techniques remain resistant to RS attacks.