A Hybrid Approach Using Cryptography and K-Least Significant Bit Steganography Algorithm in Cloud Computing

The exponential growth of communication technologies has broadened the cloud computing ecosystem horizon to meet main communication needs. However, in-parallel upsurge in online attacks has alarmed industries to ensure optimal data security. The combination of steganography and cryptosystems has been recognized as an enhanced security model for data transfer among the main security systems now in use. In this paper, a hybrid approach using cryptography and K- Least Significant Bit Steganography algorithm in Cloud Computing (HYBC-KLSBS-CC) are proposed. Initially, input text data is retrieved from cloud storage and compressed using Huffman Compression Coding (HCC) to reduce data size. The compressed data is then encrypted with a Hybrid Cryptography Algorithm (Hyb-MRFC-ALC), combining Modified Random Fibonacci Cryptography and Asymmetric Lightweight Cryptography to ensure robust encryption. Finally, encrypted data is embedded within an image using the K-Least Significant Bit (KLSB) steganography technique, providing additional layer of security. The proposed method enhances data confidentiality, integrity, and storage efficiency in cloud environments. The proposed HYBC-KLSBS-CC approach attains 26.89%, 29.49% and 18.64% lower PSNR and 26.89%, 29.49% and 18.64% lower MSE when analyzed through existing techniques like data security dependent on cryptography steganography related with OTP procedure and Huffman coding in the cloud environment (CS-OTP-CE), a novel hybrid cryptographic framework for secure data storage in cloud computing: Integrating AES-OTP and RSA with adaptive key management and Time-Limited access control (AES-OTP-RSA-CC) and Crypto-Stegno dependent model for securing medical information on IOMT platform (CS-SMI-IOMT).