Apple Introduces End-to-End Encrypted RCS Messaging in the iOS 26.4 Beta

The long-awaited cross-platform end-to-end encrypted RCS messaging between Android and iOS users has finally begun its testing phase in the recently released beta for iOS 26.4.

A new toggle has appeared in the settings on the beta for iOS 26.4 that allows you to enable or disable E2EE for RCS. The setting is only available for messaging between iOS users for now.

RCS is a GSMA standard for cross-platform messaging meant to replace the archaic SMS that's been around since the 1980's.

RCS adds the features that are expected of a modern messenger such as typing indicators, reactions, and high-resolution images and videos.

With the announcement of RCS Universal Profile 3.0, the GSMA added support for E2EE using Messaging-Layer Security, an IETF standard for encrypted messaging.

Apple originally announced their intentions to add in a statement to 9to5Mac back in March of last year:

End-to-end encryption is a powerful privacy and security technology that iMessage has supported since the beginning, and now we are pleased to have helped lead a cross industry effort to bring end-to-end encryption to the RCS Universal Profile published by the GSMA. We will add support for end-to-end encrypted RCS messages to iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and watchOS in future software updates.

Since then, it's been mostly radio silence on the feature, until now that is.

In the release notes for the beta, Apple states that the feature will not be shipping with the stable release of iOS 26.4 and is just for testing during the beta, and that the feature won't be available for all devices or carriers:

RCS end-to-end encryption is now available for testing in this beta. This feature is not shipping in this release and will be available to customers in a future software update for iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and watchOS. End-to-end encryption is in beta and is not available for all devices or carriers. Conversations labeled as encrypted are encrypted end-to-end, so messages can’t be read while they’re sent between devices. In this beta, RCS encryption is available for testing between Apple devices and is not yet testable with other platforms.

Unfortunately, RCS messaging depends on carrier support, so you'll need to make sure your carrier supports RCS messaging. It's likely that even carriers that currently support RCS will take a while to upgrade to Universal Profile 3.0 and beyond as well.

Apple maintains a list of carriers and what features they support, so once the feature is fully released you will likely be able to check there if your carrier supports RCS E2EE.

Google messages, the default texting app on a lot of Android phones, has supported E2EE RCS messaging for years, but they used their own in-house encryption based on the Signal protocol.

Google states in an FAQ on RCS messaging that for now, E2EE messaging is still limited to other Google Messages users:

Google Messages offers end-to-end encryption for your RCS messages with other Google Messages users. The GSM Association (GSMA) sets Mobile and RCS standards and we are currently working to define security standards cross platform.

Reportedly, Google has been testing out the new MLS-based encryption in preparation for inter-operational encryption.

Apple still states that RCS isn't encrypted in their documentation:

RCS messages aren’t end-to-end encrypted, which means they're not protected from a third-party reading them while they're sent between devices.

We'll be watching to see if that changes in the near future.

With Apple, Google, and carriers all getting onboard, the pieces for default E2EE messaging are beginning to fall into place after almost two years since the first hints were dropped by the GSMA.