The Venatus Dossiers
Deeper dives into the world of steganography, cryptography, and digital forensics.
The Yellow Dots on Your Documents: How Printers Use Steganography to Track You
Discover the secret, nearly invisible tracking dots that most color laser printers embed on every page you print. Learn what they are, why they exist, and the hidden world of physical steganography.
Published on July 14, 2025
Digital Dead Drops: Steganography in Modern Espionage
From a loose brick in a city wall to a hidden comment on a public forum. Explore how spies, journalists, and activists use steganography to create modern 'dead drops' for secure, anonymous communication.
Published on July 10, 2025
Stealthy Data Theft: 5 Ways Malware Uses Steganography
Steganography isn't just a puzzle game; it's a powerful tool used by sophisticated malware to steal data, hide code, and communicate with attackers, all while remaining invisible to security software.
Published on July 9, 2025
The Digital Canvas: Why Images are Perfect for Hiding Data
An image is worth a thousand words—or a thousand secrets. Explore why digital images are the ideal medium for steganography, from their vast data capacity to the forgiving nature of human perception.
Published on July 8, 2025
Beyond Files: An Introduction to Network Steganography
What if secrets could be hidden not in a file, but in the invisible chatter between computers? This guide introduces the advanced and stealthy world of network steganography, the art of hiding data in network traffic itself.
Published on July 8, 2025
The Ghost in the Machine: A Deep Dive into Audio Spectrograms
How can you hide a picture inside a sound? This deep dive explores the fascinating world of audio spectrograms, the science behind them, and how artists and puzzle-makers use them to create hidden visual messages.
Published on July 7, 2025
Hiding in Plain Sight: A Beginner's Guide to Steganography
Ever wondered how a simple image or audio file could carry a secret message? This guide breaks down the core techniques of digital steganography, from text and images to network traffic, in an easy-to-understand way.
Published on July 6, 2025
Steganography vs. Cryptography: What's the Difference?
A deep dive into two cornerstones of secret communication. One scrambles messages, and the other hides them entirely. Learn the crucial differences and why both are vital in the digital age.
Published on June 25, 2025
Become a Digital Detective: Using Wireshark to Find Hidden Data
Ready to look at the internet's raw data stream? This beginner's guide introduces Wireshark, the world's foremost network protocol analyzer, and shows you how to use it to find secrets hidden in network traffic.
Published on June 25, 2025
Anatomy of a Puzzle: A Walkthrough and Explanation of Venatus Level 3
Go behind the scenes of 'The Trojan Horse'. This detailed walkthrough not only shows you how to solve Venatus Level 3, but explains the steganographic principles that make the puzzle work.
Published on June 24, 2025
A Tale of Two Strings: The Deceptive Power of Unicode's Invisible Characters
How can two identical-looking pieces of text be completely different? Dive into the world of zero-width characters and other Unicode tricks used for steganography, social media watermarking, and even phishing attacks.
Published on June 23, 2025
DIY Steganography: A Simple Python Script to Hide Messages in Images
Ever wanted to create your own steganographic puzzles? This step-by-step tutorial guides you through writing a simple Python script to hide and reveal secret messages inside digital images using the LSB technique.
Published on May 30, 2025