Reversible data hiding for high quality images exploiting interpolation and direction order mechanism

Reversible data hiding can restore the original image from the stego image without any distortion after the embedded secret message is exactly extracted. In this paper, a novel, reversible, data hiding scheme for high quality images is proposed in spatial domain. To increase embedding capacity and enhance image quality, the proposed scheme classifies all pixels as wall pixels and non-wall pixels. For wall pixel, the interpolation error is used to embed secret data over the interpolation prediction method. In contrast, the difference value between the non-wall pixel and its parent pixel, which is defined by the direction order, is computed to hide secret data based on the histogram shifting. The experimental results demonstrate that our scheme provides a larger payload and a better image quality than some existing schemes. Moreover, the performance of the proposed scheme is more stable for different images.

► We proposed a novel reversible data hiding scheme for high quality images.
► All pixels of the cover image are classified as wall pixels and non-wall pixels.
► For wall pixel, the interpolation error is used to embed secret data.
► For non-wall pixel, we compute the difference value of adjacent pixels based on the direction order to hide secret data.
► The experimental results demonstrate the proposed scheme provides a better embedding performance than some compared schemes.