Project Abstract

The rise of AI generated media and misinformation has made it increasingly difficult to distinguish real from fake/altered digital content. My project addresses the urgent need for a reliable system that can authenticate digital images, ensuring trust in visual media shared online by implementing a social media platform which demonstrates signature verification and highlights verified contributors, utilising a reputation system. The impact is especially significant in journalism and social media, where manipulated content can have serious consequences. This project combines public key cryptography (PKC), trusted execution environments (TEE), and SHA-256 hashing. The core aim is to answer: How can we securely verify the authenticity of digital images using cryptographic signatures embedded at the point of capture? To achieve this, I’ve designed a system where a camera’s hardware signs each image with a private key securely stored in a TEE, while verification is done using the corresponding public key. The digital signature is uploaded alongside the media, and a verification platform checks integrity. In conclusion, this project contributes a secure and scalable approach to authenticating digital media, offering a foundation for combating misinformation and enhancing trust in content online.

Keywords: Media authentication, Blockchain, Digital signatures

 Conference Details

Session: A

Location: Sir Stanley Clarke Auditorium at 11:00 13:00

Markers: Arnold Beckmann, Casey Hopkins

Course: BSc Computer Science 3yr FT

Future Plans: I’m looking for work