An Adaptive JPEG Steganography Algorithm Based on the UT-GAN Model

Adversarial examples pose severe challenges to information security, as their impacts directly extend to steganography and steganalysis technologies. This scenario, in turn, has further spurred the research and application of adversarial steganography. In response, we propose a novel adversarial embedding scheme rooted in a hybrid, partially data-driven approach. The proposed scheme first leverages an adversarial neural network (UT-GAN, Universal Transform Generative Adversarial Network) to generate stego images as a preprocessing step. Subsequently, it dynamically adjusts the cost function with the aid of a DCTR (Discrete Cosine Transform Residual)-based gradient calculator to optimize the images, ensuring that the final adversarial images can resist detection by steganalysis tools. The encoder in this scheme adopts a unique architecture, where its internal parameters are determined by a partially data-driven mechanism. This design not only enhances the capability of traditional steganography schemes to counter advanced steganalysis technologies but also effectively reduces the computational overhead during stego image generation.