A Post-Quantum Secure and Covert Communication Framework: Hybrid Goppa Code-based Niederreiter Cryptosystem Integrated with LSB Image Steganography

The emergence of quantum computing poses a serious threat to conventional cryptographic schemes, necessitating the development of post-quantum cryptosystems. Simultaneously, covert communication demands innovative solutions to ensure secure and unobtrusive data transmission. This paper introduces a hybrid framework integrating the Goppa code-based Niederreiter cryptosystem with the Least Significant Bit (LSB) image steganography. The proposed scheme offers robust post-quantum confidentiality while effectively concealing ciphertext within images to achieve stealth communication. Detailed algorithms and system architecture are presented, underscoring the feasibility and security of the proposed model.