An efficient and compromise-resilient image encryption scheme for resource-constrained environments

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 19; no. 4; p. e0297534
• Main Authors: Khan, Abdul Nasir, Mehmood, Abid, Bhutta, Muhammad Nasir Mumtaz, Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khan, Atta ur Rehman
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 18.04.2024; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Analysis; Biology and life sciences; Computer and Information Sciences; Cryptography; Differential equations; Physical Sciences; Privacy; Privacy, Right of; Research and Analysis Methods; United Arab Emirates
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0297534

The secret keys produced by current image cryptosystems, which rely on chaotic sequences, exhibit a direct correlation with the size of the image. As the image dimensions expand, the generation of extensive chaotic sequences in the encryption and decryption procedures becomes more computationally intensive. Secondly, a common problem in existing image encryption schemes is the compromise between privacy and efficiency. Some existing lightweight schemes reveal patterns in encrypted images, while others impose heavy computational burdens during encryption/decryption due to the need for large chaotic sequences. In this study, we introduce a lightweight image encryption scheme that involves partitioning the image into uniformly sized tiles and generating a chaotic sequence accordingly. This approach diminishes the necessity to create extensive chaotic sequences equal to the tile size, which is significantly smaller than the original image. As a result, it alleviates the processing burden associated with generating sequences equivalent to the original image size. The results confirm that our proposed scheme is lightweight and secure compared to the latest state-of-the-art image encryption schemes. Additionally, sensitivity analysis demonstrates that the proposed image encryption technique, with a UACI value of 33.48 and NPRC value of 99.96, affirms its resistance to differential attacks.