Three-cascade-Steps based Image Encryption Scheme (TSIES) for Digital Energy Hub Applications

Abstract

Image encryption is an important process followed by many information security related applications. It has contributed much in confidentiality and integration of original contents. There have been numerous techniques and algorithms proposed in order to counter continuously evolutional attacks made by unauthorized parties. This paper has proposed a Three-cascade-Steps Image Encryption Scheme (TSIES) algorithm to encrypt images’ contents. It consists of three steps to increase the complexity of decryption attempts. The first step is to apply an Image’s edges Detection Process (IDP) to reduce unwanted details inside images while keeping image’s features e.g., edges highlighted and unchanged. Then, an Image Conversion Process (ICP) is applied to change the image form into unpredictable series of digits and alphanumeric. This will keep image’ contents integrated. Thirdly, TSIES applies an Image Encryption Process (IEP) by proposing two cycles of encryption to increase the confidentiality. Results have shown an efficient IDP performance. The IEP has proved to produce different forms of encrypted codes formalized in a Quick Response (QR) code. One of the interesting security applications, in this setting, is that such encrypted QR-codes are used with digital energy hub applications, smart home systems and so on.