HEVC video information hiding scheme based on adaptive double-layer embedding strategy*

High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) is well-known as an internationally popular video coding standard, and HEVC-based steganography has received increasing attention. In this paper, a new adaptive HEVC video information hiding method based on Prediction Unit (PU) partition mode and double-layer embedding strategy is proposed. Double-layer embedding is a method to complete the first-layer embedding using the mapping rules of PU partition mode, and to perform the second-layer embedding after the first-layer embedding. The cost assignment function designed in this paper can accurately evaluate the second-layer data embedding distortion. The frame position, motion properties and block size of PU are taken into consideration for the second-layer data embedding, and the syndrome-trellis codes (STCs) are used to minimize the embedding distortion. Experimental results show that the proposed adaptive double-layer embedding algorithm has better embedding efficiency and less embedding distortion in most cases.