HIDE: hyperchaotic image encryption using DNA computing

Digital images are encrypted to prevent malicious attempts by unauthorized users from accessing the sensitive information. Recently, a number of chaotic image encryption schemes are cryptanalyzed using known/chosen plaintext attacks (KPA/CPA) and internal state leakage due to less correlation between the plaintext and key stream inherent by design. In this paper, we propose an efficient and secure image encryption scheme HIDE based on a four dimensional Hyperchaotic Rabinovich system and Deoxyribo Nucleic Acid (DNA) computing. To resist against the KPA/CPA attacks, we introduce a sandwich permutation diffusion architecture that consists of DNA-based arithmetic diffusion to uniformly diffuse the plain image. The symmetric diffusion structure counteracts the computational redundancy and powerful cryptanalytic attacks. The key stream is made sufficiently complex and non-linear by dynamically generating and selecting the keystream. HIDE introduces many improvements towards design of robust image encryption scheme that has resulted in increased key space to resist against brute force attack, preventing leakage of the internal state of the hyper chaotic system, the sandwich permutation architecture and the plaintext-related dynamic key generation and selection based on DNA computing can resist KPA/CPA attacks. The standard empirical statistical security tests conducted extensively shows that the proposed method passes all statistical security and performance benchmarks to guarantee security and operational efficiency that are required of a robust and secure encryption scheme.