steganography

noun steg·a·nog·ra·phy \ ˌste-gə-ˈnä-grə-fē \

|Updated on: 14 Jun 2018

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of steganography

1 archaic : cryptography

2 : the art or practice of concealing a message, image, or file within another message, image, or file

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steganographic

play \ˌste-gə-nə-ˈgra-fik\ adjective

steganography was our Word of the Day on 11/26/2006. Hear the podcast!

Recent Examples of steganography from the Web

Mallory explained in interviews with the CIA and FBI that were played in court on Thursday that the phone contained an app designed to facilitate steganography, or the hiding of information inside of an image.

— rachel weiner, Washington Post, "Faulty Chinese spy technology may help convict former CIA officer of espionage," 1 June 2018
Provos has been working on steganography since June, ever since USA Today printed a sensationalistic report, which called encryption one of bin Laden's favorite tools.

— farhad manjoo, WIRED, "Hidden Messages: Any There There?," 8 Nov. 2001

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'steganography.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

Steganography is a word that was resurrected after being in disuse for almost 150 years! It was put to rest in the early 1800s, labeled an archaic synonym of "cryptography" by dictionary makers, but was brought back to life in the 1980s as a word for a type of digital cryptography. There is nothing cryptic about the word's origin; it is based on the Greek word steganos, meaning "covered" or "reticent."