Simplified MAP Detector for Binary Fingerprinting Code Embedded by Spread Spectrum Watermarking Scheme

When a binary fingerprinting codeword is embedded into multimedia content by using a spread-spectrum (SS) watermarking scheme, it is difficult for colluders to perform a symbol-wise attack using their codewords. As discussed in regard to SS fingerprinting schemes, averaging their copies is a cost-effective attack from the signal processing point of view. If the number of colluders is known, an optimal detector can be used against an averaging attack with added white Gaussian noise. The detector first estimates the variance of additive noise, and then calculates correlation scores using a log-likelihood-based approach. However, the number of colluders is not usually known in a real situation. In this paper, we simplify the optimal detector by making statistical approximations and using the characteristics of the parameters for generating codewords. After that, we propose an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing-based SS watermarking scheme to embed the fingerprinting codeword into multimedia content. In a realistic situation, the signal embedded as a fingerprint is in principle attenuated by lossy compression. Because the signal amplitude in a pirated codeword is attenuated, we should adaptively estimate the parameters before calculating the scores. Different from the optimal detector, the simplified detector can easily accommodate changes in signal amplitude by examining the distorted codeword extracted from a pirated copy. We evaluate the performance of the simplified detector through simulation using digital images as well as codewords.