Coral reefs hold great importance as ecosystems and offer a host of functions from providing habitats for various marine species, serving as a source of tourism, nutrient, and coastal protection. Within this study, the biodiverse coral reefs of the Gulf of Aqaba that are known for their tolerance against global warming are addressed, detailing the dire necessity of effective monitoring techniques and conservation practices. Using different imaging techniques, we performed extended underwater photography, capturing coral photos, and having over 11,200 images collected for analysis. Nevertheless, many of the images are accessed throughout various research databases making them vulnerable to alterations that can result in data corruption. To overcome this, coral imagery was cryptographically watermarked with Secure Hash Algorithm 256-bit (SHA-256). An invisible seal is placed on the data which  provides a tamper-evident seal of the image, ensuring that any tampering is easily detectable. The findings exemplify the strength of the provided watermarking method which endured frequent alterations including resizing and compression, while being sensitive to color changes and cropping. In addition, the mock public database provided logic to the tracking of the image’s origin, allowing the protection of distortion-resistant coral images from the widespread access. This study significantly aids in the preservation of coral reefs, and establishes the value of protecting marine biological information in ecological research by offering reliable data storage and sharing solutions.