Steganographic file system

Abstract

A steganographic file system provides a strong protection of data by hiding data's existence. In this file system, access to the hidden data is possible only if the correct access key is presented. Without it, an attacker could get no information about whether the hidden data ever exists, even if he understands the system completely. Without knowing the existence of data, adversaries would not be motivated to perform attacks, and many security threats could thus be eliminated. This thesis is focused on designing effective and efficient steganographic file systems for various application environments that are faced with different levels of risks. First, we construct a practical steganographic file system that could overcome the weakness of existing systems. Then, we extend it from local computers to open network platforms which are faced with more security threats. We also propose a model for steganographic file system that could be used to evaluate its effectiveness in different application environments.