OPEN JOURNAL OF INFORMATION SECURITY AND APPLICATIONS Improved LSB method for Image Steganography using Hénon Chaotic Map

Image steganography conceals secret information in a cover image.It is used for secure data transfer. Various LSB (least significant bits) approaches have been used over the years in steganography. This paper proposes a novel technique to improve the conventional LSB technique for image steganography by using pseudo random number generation using Hénon chaotic map. The random numbers are used to encrypt the hide image which is embedded in the cover picture. This encryption using pseudo random generator provides sufficient security to the payload as the same set of random numbers cannot be regenerated without knowing the exact random generator function and thus the secret data cannot be retrieved easily. The proposed technique has been tested successfully on various.jpg files and corresponding PSNR values have been calculated. Keywords: Hénon chaotic map; Information hiding LSB modification; PSNR (peak signal to noise ratio)