PySteg

Inspiration

I heard someone talk about this a while ago and I told some people about it and they wanted to make it at this hackathon, so we did.

What it does

The encoder takes a PNG image and any file which is small enough and generates a visually indistinguishable PNG image which contains the file encoded in it. The encoding methods conceals 1 bit of data per channel per pixel. The decoder takes a PNG image with an encoded file and decodes the file from it.

How we built it

This project uses Python 2.7, and a simple library called PyPng that deals with details of the PNG format.

Challenges we ran into

Different versions of the PNG format were frustrating.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Encoding the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy inside a picture of Kanye West.

What's next for PySteg

Possibilities include allowing the user to input a higher encoding density, such as 4 bits per channel per pixel, or using Amazon Web Services to turn this module into an API.