iOS 26.4 Beta Adds End-to-End Encryption for iPhone-to-Android RCS Texts

[podycust]

All dependent on whether your carrier implements rcs of course. Mine hasn’t and likely never will.

Vodafone UK by any chance?

 

[patjem]

Anyone has an idea where I can find which carriers support RCS on iPhone?

 

[Bones402]

It is safe to say if you haven't already, completely drop your expectations of being able to use any new features promised from the OS teams. They suck at delivering and have lost the industry standard those talk about is if in books of old.

 

[Bones402]

iOS 27 is going to be really good I think.

you will be disappointed and its ok.

 

[patjem]

Anyone has an idea where I can find which carriers support RCS on iPhone?

I found it myself at https://support.apple.com/nl-nl/108048 . If your carriers support it, it has "RCS-berichten" (In Dutch) in the list. No Dutch carrier supports it atm.

 

[johnsawyercjs]

According to Apple's developer release notes for beta 2, while E2EE is being tested for RCS, it isn't going to ship in iOS 26.4 and will instead come at a later date.

Seems odd

 

[sdf]

End-to-end encryption is great if you have full faith in the security of both of the endpoints.

If you don't, then it is irrelevant.

…and faith in the key storage. Sort of the same thing, but key storage is a place the endpoints (somtimes) acknowledge there's no security.

 

[johnsawyercjs]

It’s hard to find a definitive answer to whether the current implementation of RCS E2EE is post-quantum resistant.

That feature will be added once the quantum world becomes entirely predictable

 

[whelmedjedi]

I welcome this news. I have family members on Android who send/receive messages to me and iOS 18 gave us the ability to exchange photos and videos seamlessly. If this is in the final 26.4 release, I will finally upgrade from iOS 18

welcoming rcs is different than welcoming "its coming in iOS 18!, no, its coming with iOS 26!, no its actually will come with ios 26.5!"

 

[JohnC1959]

The ENTIRE iOS team needs to be fired.

Well then new features will DEFINITELY be delayed indefinitely.

 

[TimFL1]

This is an important point.

Google wanted Apple to add E2EE to iMessage via Google’s proprietary system so there’d be a messaging duopoly and Google would finally have a relevant messenger after 15 years of failures.

This is why they don’t open APIs so other messengers could add RCS while at the same time trying to shame Apple into adding RCS.

Then Apple stuck it to Google by saying they’ll support an industry standard version of E2EE instead.

Apple didn‘t stick anything, since they seem to completely ignore the spec they vowed to implement. Still loads of mandatory features missing on iOS RCS.

 

[Will Tisdale 🎗]

It was sometimes working in beta 1 on the EE network in the UK.

 

[CarAnalogy]

JioMessages supports RCS.

JioMessages - Apps on Google Play

All-in-One SMS & RCS Message organizer by Jio.

play.google.com

Messages is a free, easy-to-use messaging app by Jio that combines SMS and RCS (Rich Communication Services) into one seamless experience. With a modern interface, powerful features, and real-time chat capabilities, it’s the perfect messaging solution for today’s connected users.

To quote the most helpful review of the app, with 13 upvotes and a one star rating of the app:

This app can send RCS messages to only iphones having jio sim & can't send RCS messages to even android users of any network

So it appears this is a proprietary implementation not compatible with either iMessage or Google Messages.

Which makes sense. I assume Jio is an MVNO (immediate correction, they are an Indian telcom.) so within their own system they could do it, but Google does not allow anyone else to use their RCS API and of course neither does Apple.

 

[Electroni]

It’s nice that they finally implemented the E2EE encryption introduced in RCS Universal Profile 3.0. However, it’s just as important to know whether they also implemented the important messaging features enhancements introduced back in UP v2.7.

 

[dkh587]

End-to-end encryption is great if you have full faith in the security of both of the endpoints.

If you don't, then it is irrelevant.

It has its limits, but it’s not irrelevant.

 

[dkh587]

It’s nice that they finally implemented the E2EE encryption introduced in RCS Universal Profile 3.0. However, it’s just as important to know whether they also implemented the important messaging features enhancements introduced back in UP v2.7.

I’m honestly expecting them to not update it completely to 3.0 (which includes everything in 2.7, of course) but somehow figure out a way to encrypt the messaging while retaining the current version.

I hope this isn’t the case, but I’m expecting it so that they don’t disappoint me.

 

[justanotherdave]

Apple didn‘t stick anything, since they seem to completely ignore the spec they vowed to implement. Still loads of mandatory features missing on iOS RCS.

Way to miss the point. Google once again failed to become a player in messaging.

 

[Octavius8]

WhatsApp?.

 

[Mrjoedot]

it all depends on the carrier. beside, no one outside US uses it. everyone uses other messengers anyway

 

[svish]

Great to hear this. Hopefully all carriers will support this in the near future.

 

[koil]

All dependent on whether your carrier implements rcs of course. Mine hasn’t and likely never will.

Zero carriers in Sweden support RCS on iPhone...

The optimist in me is hoping the reason was not being able to provide RCS with E2EE, but in my heart I know it's simpler than that, they are probably very happy not having to maintain RCS infrastructure for their iPhone users...

 

[janderland]

And still the world does not care about RCS and everyone still uses WhatsApp.

It’s almost like cross platform messaging was a solved problem.

Yes, by the “privacy conscious” Meta.

When a product is for free, you are the product.

 

[mrochester]

Zero carriers in Sweden support RCS on iPhone...

The optimist in me is hoping the reason was not being able to provide RCS with E2EE, but in my heart I know it's simpler than that, they are probably very happy not having to maintain RCS infrastructure for their iPhone users...

Especially as cross platform messaging is a solved problem. Waste of money for the network to support RCS.

 

[koil]

Especially as cross platform messaging is a solved problem. Waste of money for the network to support RCS.

I disagree, I think it's important to be able to send messages without having to rely on a US tech giant to do so.

 

[mrochester]

I disagree, I think it's important to be able to send messages without having to rely on a US tech giant to do so.

RCS relies on both a US tech giant and your network to be able to use.