Gradiant concludes research to develop an illegal multimedia content detector
With an investment of nearly €7 million, UNCOVER unvolved entities from 9 countries
Gradiant has provided essential tools to investigate digital media crimes and combat cybercrime.
Last July, Gradiant presented the results of its work as part of the European research project UNCOVER (Development of an Efficient Steganalysis Framework for Uncovering Hidden Data in Digital Media). This initiative focused on detecting hidden information in video files and was conducted in collaboration with 22 entities from 9 countries, coordinated by the Royal Military Academy of Brussels.
Among the Spanish partners were Gradiant, the University of Vigo, the Basque Government’s Department of Security, and Ethical & Legal Plus. Other collaborators included the Dutch police, the French Ministry of the Interior, and Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation.
A European Collaboration to Uncover Hidden Data
With a total investment of nearly €7 million, UNCOVER received support from the European Commission under the prestigious Horizon 2020 R&D program. Its primary goal was to assist European law enforcement agencies (LEAs) in detecting hidden information embedded in seemingly innocent digital media, such as images, videos, audio, and text, using steganography tools.
The project culminated in an event held in Brussels on July 4, where its achievements were presented. The research advanced the field of forensic media investigation, particularly in the development and refinement of steganalysis techniques.
Machine Learning and Steganography
Steganography is a technique for hiding information in multimedia files by embedding it within another piece of content. Unlike traditional cryptography, which encrypts a secret message into an unintelligible form, steganography hides the communication itself by encoding the message within a seemingly innocent image, video, or text.
Throughout UNCOVER, Gradiant led research on forensic analysis technologies in collaboration with the Signal Processing in Communications Group (GPSC) at atlanTTic. The focus was on developing a suite of tools using Machine Learning to analyze images for steganalysis and detect traces embedded by steganography tools.
Gradiant experts also worked with Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language Processing (NLP) techniques to design a novel method for detecting text-based steganography.
A New Path for Digital Forensic Investigation Technologies
The final event at the Royal Military Academy of Brussels celebrated UNCOVER’s remarkable achievements. It provided a collaborative forum where law enforcement agencies, security experts, and researchers exchanged insights and discussed the future of forensic media investigation.
The event featured roundtables and discussions led by UNCOVER consortium members and distinguished guests. Attendees participated in a day filled with thought-provoking presentations, live demonstrations of the innovative UNCOVER toolbox, and engaging debates on future possibilities and improvements.
Gilles Robine of the European Commission’s DG HOME delivered the opening address, emphasizing the project’s contributions to law enforcement and forensic institutions. Live demonstrations showcased the practical applications of the UNCOVER toolbox as standalone tools and an integrated platform to combat various types of crime.
The event concluded with a shared sense of accomplishment and a forward-looking vision for the continuous development and application of the project’s results and insights.
Learn more about the UNCOVER final event: https://www.uncoverproject.eu/2024/06/06/uncover-final-event/
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101021687.
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