Blind robust image watermarking based on adaptive embedding strength and distribution of quantified coefficients

Abstract The image watermarking technique is a reliable method for protecting digital image rights. The most widely used digital imaging format is the JPEG (joint photographic expert’s group). This paper proposes a novel reversible robust watermarking scheme based on the JPEG image. In JPEG image, quantified Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) coefficients with varying frequency provide varied capacities and embedding deformities. To minimize total distortion for the watermarked image, we adaptively select embedding strengths and coefficients from effective frequency selection that produce less embedding distortions. Then, by weighting the difference between the quantified DCT coefficient and the DCT coefficient on the block, an advanced block selection strategy is used to the corresponding distortion, which are produced from the whole quantified alternating current (AC) shift capacity and half of the insertion capacity. The experimental results show that the proposed method can maintain good visual quality while requiring little bitstream expansion and is robust to geometrical and image processing attacks.