A Covert Communication Method Based on Signal Mimicry Image Generation Technology

Current covert communication methods have poor crypticity and reliability. Inspired by recent successes of Image Processing, we propose a covert communication method based on signal mimic image generation technology. First, the features of digital signals are extracted to generate a 1D array, and the array is mapped to a 2D matrix via a conversion protocol to generate a grayscale image for transmission. Then, an information-hiding algorithm based on the DCT watermark is employed to embed the grayscale image into the carrier image as a watermark. Finally, the image after information hiding is converted into a 1D signal for transmission via the conversion protocol, thus achieving covert communication. Simulation experiments reveal that the proposed covert communication method is feasible and there is no signal loss during processing, indicating good invisibility and interference resistance. Meanwhile, the proposed method overcomes the 1D bottleneck of covert communication and lays the foundation for the cross-application of new technologies.