Hybrid Encryption using Advanced Encryption Standard and Arnold Scrambling for 3D Color Images

Digital security ensuring the confidentiality and integrity of visual data remains a paramount challenge. The escalating sophistication of cyber threats necessitates robust encryption methods to safeguard sensitive information from unauthorized access and manipulation. Despite the development of various encryption techniques, inherent vulnerabilities exist within conventional methods that can be exploited by attackers. Therefore, this research aims to investigate the effectiveness of the combined approach of Arnold Scrambling and Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) in mitigating these vulnerabilities and providing a more secure solution. The primary goal of this research is to enhance the security of digital images by mitigating vulnerabilities associated with conventional encryption methods. Arnold Scrambling introduces chaotic mapping to disperse pixel values, while Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) provides robust cryptographic strength through its substitution-permutation network. By combining these methods in an ensemble fashion, the encryption process achieves heightened resilience against various cryptographic attacks. The proposed methodology was evaluated by using standard metrics including Unified Average Changing Intensity (UACI), Number of Pixels Change Rate (NPCR), and entropy analysis. Results indicate consistent performance across multiple test images, namely: Lena, Mandrill, Cameraman, and Plane with Unified Average Changing Intensity (UACI) averaging 33.6% and Number of Pixels Change Rate (NPCR) nearing 99.8%. Entropy values approached maximum, affirming the efficacy of the encryption in generating highly randomized outputs.