Steganography Script

Steganography Script is a simple command-line tool for embedding and extracting hidden messages in the metadata of image and video files using ExifTool.

Requirements

Ubuntu/Debian

To install ExifTool, use the following command:

sudo apt-get install exiftool

macOS

If you're using Homebrew, install ExifTool with:

brew install exiftool

Adding the Script to PATH

To make the script easily executable from any location, you can add it to your system's PATH.

1. Move the Script to a Directory in PATH

   You need to place the script in a directory that is included in your system's PATH environment variable. Common directories for user scripts are /usr/local/bin or ~/bin.

   To move steganography to /usr/local/bin, use:

   sudo mv steganography /usr/local/bin/

   Make sure to give it execute permissions:

   sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/steganography

   If you prefer to use ~/bin, first create the directory if it doesn't exist:

   mkdir -p ~/bin

   Then move the script there:

   mv steganography ~/bin/

   Ensure ~/bin is in your PATH. Add this line to your .bashrc, .zshrc, or equivalent configuration file:

   export PATH="$HOME/bin:$PATH"

   After editing, reload the configuration file:

   source ~/.bashrc or source ~/.zshrc

2. Verify the Script is Accessible

   You should now be able to run the script from anywhere by typing:

   steganography

Script Overview

The script provides two main functionalities:

• Embedding a message into the metadata of a file.
• Extracting a message from the metadata of a file.

Commands

• embed: Embeds a message into the file's metadata.
• extract: Extracts a message from the file's metadata.

Options

• -f, --file FILE: Specifies the target file (required for both commands).
• -m, --message MSG: Specifies the message to embed (required for the embed command).
• -o, --output FILE: Specifies the output file (optional, useful if you want to keep the original file unchanged).
• -h, --help: Displays the help message.
• -v, --version: Displays the script version.

Usage

Embedding a Message

To embed a message into the metadata of a file, use the embed command. Here’s the syntax:

steganography embed -f <file> -m "<message>" [-o <output>]

Example:

steganography embed -f image.jpg -m "This is a hidden message" -o output.jpg

In this example:

• image.jpg is the target file.
• "This is a hidden message" is the message to embed.
• output.jpg is the file that will contain the hidden message. If not specified, the original file will be overwritten.

Extracting a Message

To extract a hidden message from the metadata of a file, use the extract command. Here’s the syntax:

steganography extract -f <file>

Example:

steganography extract -f image.jpg

In this example:

• image.jpg is the file from which to extract the hidden message.

Help and Version

To display the help message:

steganography -h

To display the script version:

steganography -v

Script Details

Script File: steganography

Version: 1.1

Author: Daniel

Additional Information

• Backup Files: ExifTool creates a backup of the original file by default (e.g., file.jpg_original). The script removes this backup or renames it based on the -o option.
• File Formats: This script works with files that support metadata, including JPG, PNG, MP3, and MP4. Ensure that your file type supports the metadata field used for embedding messages.
• Security Note: Metadata can be easily accessed and modified. For sensitive information, consider using additional encryption methods.

For any issues or feature requests, please contact [Your Contact Information] or open an issue on the repository page.