when RCS messaging Become Available on iPhone With the launch of iOS 18, the technical director of the GSM Association make fun of The next major milestone in the messaging standard is the addition of interoperable end-to-end encryption. Now, six months later, GSMA has issued A newer set of specifications for RCS messaging, including end-to-end encryption based (E2EE) Message layer security (MLS) protocol. The new RCS configuration file will ensure that messages and files remain secure and confidential when sent between iOS and Android devices.
“…RCS will be the first large-scale messaging service to support interoperable E2EE between customer implementations from different providers. Along with other unique security features such as SIM-based authentication, E2EE will provide RCS users with the highest privacy and security to prevent higher protection from scams, frauds, other security and privacy threats,” RCS, or a rich communications service, provides people with a way to send images, videos and audio clips to each other through text on different platforms. Since early 2024, Google’s RCS implementation has implemented default end-to-end encryption for one-to-one and group chats, but only if all participants use Google messages for RCS chats to open. At the same time, iMessages is already protected by E2EE.
In the statement sent to 9to5macApple said, “It’s great to help lead the cross-industry effort to bring end-to-end encryption into the RCS common profile published by GSMA.” It also vowed to add support for iOS, iPados, macos and WatchOS “in future software updates” to increase support for end-to-end encryption. Without a defined timeframe, it’s hard to say when Apple is rolling out an update to support security features, but when it does so, it will block third parties from intercepting and accessing potentially sensitive and private messages.
