steganography [steg-uh-nog-ruh-fee]

noun

the technique or practice of concealing a secret message or image in a digital file or physical object that is not secret, as when watermarking a digital image or using invisible ink.

examples

1. The art of hiding secrets in plain sight is called steganography—distinct from the more commonly used cryptography, which hides the message itself but not the fact that it is being shared. "AI Could Smuggle Secret Messages in Memes." Scientific American. 1 Sept 2023.

2. This time, some variants use techniques such as steganography, an obfuscation method rarely seen in mobile malware. Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, 23 Sep. 2024.

origins
Steganography is a word that was resurrected after being in disuse for almost 150 years! It was put to rest in the early 1800s, labeled an archaic synonym of "cryptography" by dictionary makers, but was brought back to life in the 1980s as a word for a type of digital cryptography. There is nothing cryptic about the word's origin; it is based on the Greek word steganos, meaning "covered" or "reticent."



Peniarth MS 423D is a volume of astrological texts written in Latin. It is a transcript, dated 1591, of Steganographia by Johannes Trithemius (1462-1516), which was originally written in the late 1490s. Steganography is the act of writing in a secret code. This version is in the hand of Dr John Dee, Queen Elizabeth I's ‘favourite philosopher’.