IMG_CAT: An approach to dismantle the anonymity of a source camera using correlative features and an integrated 1D convolutional neural network

With the proliferation of smartphones, digital data collection has become trivial. The ability to analyze images has increased, but source authentication has stagnated. Editing and tampering of images has become more common with advancements in signal processing technology. Recent developments have introduced the use of seam carving (insertion and deletion) techniques to disguise the identity of the camera, specifically in the child pornography market. In this article, we focus on the available features in the image based on PRNU (photo response nonuniformity). The forced-seam sculpting technique is a well-known method to create occlusion for camera attribution by injecting seams into each 50 × 50 pixel block. To counter this, we perform camera identification using a 1D CNN integrated with feature extractions on 20 × 20 pixel blocks. We achieve state-of-the-art performance for our proposed IMG_CAT (image categorization) in three-class classification over the baselines (original, seam removed, seam inserted). Based on our experimental findings, our model is robust when dealing with blind facts related to the questionable camera.