Overview
- Apple, which released iOS 26.5 Monday, enabled end-to-end encryption for RCS chats between iPhones and Android devices.
- The implementation follows the RCS Universal Profile 3.0 standard and uses the Messaging Layer Security protocol for the cryptography.
- Apple marked the feature Beta and said encryption will switch on automatically over time, but it requires the latest Google Messages on Android and RCS 3.0 support from the involved carriers.
- Early checks reported by heise Mac & i found one iPhone–Android chat encrypted and another unencrypted in Germany, underscoring a staggered rollout.
- Apple’s carrier list shows encrypted RCS is supported by Telekom, O2 and 1&1 in Germany, with Vodafone not yet supporting it.