Finding computer files hidden in plain sight

Originally Posted by Jay-qu

I am in the process of looking for one of these said 'free steganography utilities' edit: ah found one its called steghide

Originally Posted by Boerseun

These guys alter the colour odd/even values of a successive string of pixels. So how about altering every, say, tenth pixel's value? Or there could be a simple irrational number like pi, for instance, where the digits are the spaces between the pixels that have been changed. Like 22/7, and then the altered pixel will be the third one, then one normal pixel, another altered one, then four normal pixels, then another altered one, etc. And the 22/7 would then be the 'key' needed to decrypt. There would also be a 'master' key, being the point at which the encryption started, and the 22/7 would be applied from that point forwards. Or backwards.
This is a nasty can of worms!

Originally Posted by Dark Reading

Research Shows Image-Based Threat on the Rise
New Purdue University research shows steganography, long considered a minor threat, may be on the rise

Until recently, steganography, the stealth technique of hiding text or images within image files, has mostly been considered too complex -- and conspicuous -- to be much of a threat. But some forensics experts now worry that the bad guys are starting to use the tactic more frequently, especially in child pornography and identity theft trafficking.

There are an estimated 800 or so steganography tools available online, many of them free and with user-friendly graphical user interfaces and point-and-click features. This broad availability making steganography more accessible and easier to use for hiding and moving stolen or illicit payloads, experts say.

Security experts to date have mostly dismissed steganography as a mainstream threat, relegating it to the domain of spooks and the feds. Their skepticism has been well-founded: The few studies that have searched for images hiding steganographic messages have come up empty-handed.

But now, preliminary data from a new steganography study underway at Purdue University indicates that some criminals indeed may be using steganography tools, mainly in child pornography and financial fraud cases.

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