# Enhancing Image Privacy in Semantic Communication over Wiretap Channels leveraging Differential Privacy

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2405.09234 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.09234/

## Key facts

- Cited by 1 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 15 May 2024.

## Built on by (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [Knowledge-Aided Semantic Communication Leveraging Probabilistic Graphical Modeling](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2408.04499/) (2024)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Semantic communication (SemCom) enhances transmission efficiency by sending only task-relevant information compared to traditional methods. However, transmitting semantic-rich data over insecure or public channels poses security and privacy risks. This paper addresses the privacy problem of transmitting images over wiretap channels and proposes a novel SemCom approach ensuring privacy through a differential privacy (DP)-based image protection and deprotection mechanism. The method utilizes the GAN inversion technique to extract disentangled semantic features and applies a DP mechanism to protect sensitive features within the extracted semantic information. To address the non-invertibility of DP, we introduce two neural networks to approximate the DP application and removal processes, offering a privacy protection level close to that by the original DP process. Simulation results validate the effectiveness of our method in preventing eavesdroppers from obtaining sensitive information while maintaining high-fidelity image reconstruction at the legitimate receiver.