Securing JPEG 2000 compressed images

The Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) has recently rolled out a new still image coding standard called JPEG 2000. This standard integrates an efficient image compression scheme along with functionalities required by multimedia applications, such as progressiveness up to lossless coding, region of interest coding, and error resiliency. Security is a concern in many applications, and therefore a highly desired functionality. For this reason, JPEG recently initiated an activity known as secure JPEG 2000 (JPSEC) in order to provide a standardized framework for secure imaging. This paper presents some insights on the current status of the JPSEC activities. We also provide examples of how to combine security solutions with JPEG 2000 compression. More specifically, tools for JPEG 2000 compressed image integrity, access control, and copyright protection are presented. They can be either applied to a JPEG 2000 codestream or directly integrated into the coding/decoding operations. In all cases, they result in a fully compliant JPEG 2000 image.