![\"Messaging](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1778566344_750_0x0.jpg\")
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All change for iMessage.<\/p>\n
NurPhoto via Getty Images<\/p>\n
Updated on May 12 as Apple\u2019s new messaging update goes live. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s finally here \u2014 almost. Almost 18-months after the FBI warned Americans to stop texting<\/a> between iPhone and Android, Apple has fixed the problem<\/a>. This week, iOS 26.5 should bring encrypted cross-platform messaging for the first time. <\/p>\n But Apple warns this \u201cis not available to all.” <\/p>\n That availability affects devices \u2014 suggesting not all iPhones will be capable of sending fully secure RCS messages \u2014 and also carriers, which affects even iPhones with the upgrade. And it\u2019s this second type of availability that\u2019s the bigger issue.<\/p>\n When you send a WhatsApp message it is always<\/a> end-to-end encrypted. That\u2019s because WhatsApp controls all \u201cends\u201d of the chat. The clients (apps) ensure that every message is secure. That encryption can never fall away.<\/p>\n ForbesGoogle And Microsoft Warn Passkeys May Not Stop HackersBy Zak Doffman<\/a><\/p>\n It\u2019s the same when you send an iMessage to other Apple users \u2014 the infamous blue bubbles. Every iMessage is fully encrypted. It can\u2019t send messages any other way. If one \u201cend\u201d of the chat is not using iMessage on an Apple device, the bubble is green and it\u2019s clearly noted that this is a text or RCS message.<\/p>\n With Google Messages it\u2019s more complex. If all \u201cends\u201d are using an updated version of Google Messages, then RCS messages are fully encrypted. But it\u2019s not as clear when that encryption is not running. Users need to check.<\/p>\n That\u2019s even more acute with the new upgrade. Apple\u2019s and Google\u2019s deployment of fully encrypted RCS relies on carriers not apps. The encryption is baked into the protocol<\/a>, not applied by the iMessage or Google Messages envelope. An RCS chat between an Android and iPhone user could change from end-to-end encrypted to not, depending on which networks the phones are connected to at the time.<\/p>\n In its latest release notes<\/a> ahead of the new version of iOS going live, Apple says that \u201cend-to-end encrypted RCS messaging (beta) in Messages is available with supported carriers and will roll out over time.\u201d There\u2019s an Apple messaging website<\/a>, which should carry this detail when it\u2019s available.<\/p>\n All this means that when fully encrypted RCS messaging goes live some time next week, Apple and Google users will still be more secure when using their respective walled gardens. Or when using WhatsApp or Signal. That won\u2019t change.<\/p>\n As we hit May 11 and the beginning of the week, expectations continue that Apple will release iOS 26.5 with end-to-end encrypted RCS messaging this week \u2014 likely early in the week. Per Geeky Gadget<\/a>: \u201cApple\u2019s iOS 26.5 is expected to land today or tomorrow, introducing a range of updates aimed at improving device performance, battery efficiency, and overall system stability.\u201d<\/p>\n Encrypted RCS \u2014 “not available to all.”<\/p>\n The Mac Observer<\/p>\n As the update nears, the scale of the messaging update will become ever more the focus for this and other updates expected soon. And this is a global upgrade, where RCS is more significant than in the U.S., where iMessage still dominates with WhatsApp scaling quickly as the cross-platform alternative.<\/p>\n Per Germany\u2019s Born City<\/a>: \u201cWith the update to iOS 26.5 in mid-May and the subsequent iOS 27 in June, Apple wants to close several development sites: the years of criticism of the closed-off iMessage system, the growing demand for AI-supported functions and the pressure from the regulatory authorities.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the Eastern Herald<\/a> says Apple\u2019s RCS change \u201creflects a broader industry push toward unified messaging standards, where privacy and interoperability are no longer competing priorities.\u201d The Herald is based in India, WhatsApp\u2019s biggest market. And ultimately the effect Apple\u2019s update has on WhatsApp is one of the most critical indicators to watch.<\/p>\n As expected, Apple released its encrypted RCS add-on to iMessage on May 11. \u201cIn beta<\/a>.\u201d The company messaged this as an Apple and Google collaboration, just as Google<\/a> did the same. \u201cApple and Google have led a cross-industry effort to bring end-to-end encryption to Rich Communication Services (RCS), making the cross-platform messaging format that replaces traditional SMS more secure and private.\u201d<\/p>\n This is interesting, because while the outcome is undoubtedly a major step forward, it would have been simpler and less complex a rollout if there was a direct collaboration between the two OS owners rather than a carrier protocol. <\/p>\n