Binghamton steganography expert Jessica Fridrich was featured in the July 22 edition of The New York Times in the article “For Doctored Photos, a New Flavor of Digital Truth Serum.”

Fridrich’s main research interests are in the field of secret communications—steganography and steganalysis, watermarking for authentication and tamper detection, and digital forensic analysis. She has been the principal investigator on funded research projects from the US Air Force, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, DARPA, and NSF.

Fridrich, a research professor in electrical and computer engineering, is working on a project to embed the pattern of a photographer’s iris into digital images by developing a camera that takes two pictures at once: one of the image seen in the viewfinder, and a smaller image of the photographer’s iris as they look in the viewfinder. By encrypting and hiding that image as well as information regarding the time and place of the photo session within the larger image, the authenticity of digital photos could be better assured.

Her inventions promise to spark major advances in the scope and security of digital communications, including digital audio, video and photography. Her work has already generated five US and international patents and significant interest from law enforcement and the federal officials due to its important role in the fight against terrorism.