A novel RGB image encryption algorithm based on DNA sequences and chaos

Abstract

Based on the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sequence operations and chaotic systems, a novel improved color image encryption algorithm is presented with one-time-pad. Three DNA matrices are obtained by DNA encoding the plain-image firstly. To enhance the proposed algorithm’s robustness of resisting known-plaintext and chosen-plaintext attacks, the key streams, which are used to scramble the positions of the three DNA matrices, are generated from 3D skew tent map (3D-STM) by using the secret keys and the hamming distances between the DNA matrices. Then, we perform the DNA XOR, addition and subtraction operations on the DNA matrices and the key streams to get the cipher-image. At this stage, we also update the initial values of the coupled map lattice (CML) by the circle distance of DNA matrices obtained from the previous step to further enhance the proposed algorithm’s ability of resisting plaintext attack. Finally, we get the encrypted color image by decoding DNA matrices. The simulation and security analysis show that the proposed algorithm has an extraordinary ability to resist plaintext attack, differential attack and statistical attack, etc.