iPhone-to-Android Texts Get End-to-End Encryption With iOS 26.5
Apple and Google start rolling out encrypted RCS between their platforms, closing the biggest privacy gap in cross-platform messaging.
Key takeaways
- iOS 26.5 turns on end-to-end encryption by default for RCS chats with Android users, using the MLS protocol.
- It needs supported carriers on both ends, the latest Google Messages on Android, and covers person-to-person chats only.
- Apple labels the feature a beta; SMS and business RCS messages stay unencrypted.
On May 11, 2026, Apple shipped iOS 26.5, and with it the long-promised piece of RCS that matters most for privacy: end-to-end encryption for chats between iPhones and Android phones. Google announced the matching rollout for Google Messages the same day. For the first time, the green-bubble thread is not readable by carriers or anyone in the middle.
What happened
RCS, the successor to SMS, got cross-platform support on iPhone with iOS 18, but the conversations were not encrypted. The new release adds encryption based on the Messaging Layer Security (MLS) protocol, part of the GSMA's RCS Universal Profile 3.0, which Apple helped publish alongside Google and the GSMA.
Encryption is on by default. A toggle lives in the Messages section of Settings, and encrypted chats show a small lock symbol. Apple describes the feature as a beta and says it is rolling out gradually, available with supported carriers. Existing RCS conversations are intended to be covered, not just new ones.
The fine print
Several conditions have to line up before a given thread is protected:
- The iPhone must run iOS 26.5, and the Android phone must have the latest Google Messages.
- Both users' carriers must support the latest RCS version. One unsupported carrier leaves the conversation unencrypted.
- It applies to person-to-person chats. Business messages sent over RCS, and plain SMS, are not encrypted.
- Without iOS 26.5, iPhone-to-Android RCS messages stay unencrypted.
Why it matters
Mixed-platform chats are the weak link in mobile privacy. iMessage and Google Messages conversations within their own ecosystems were already encrypted, but any thread that crossed the divide fell back to something far more exposed. Because the fix is built on an open standard rather than a proprietary bridge, it works with any client that implements Universal Profile 3.0, not just Google Messages.
The same profile adds practical features for mixed threads: message editing and deletion, cross-platform Tapback reactions and inline replies. That narrows the feature gap that pushed many groups toward WhatsApp or Signal.
How it got here
Apple agreed to support RCS in 2023 and shipped it on iPhone with iOS 18, which fixed the worst parts of the old SMS experience: full-resolution photos and video, typing indicators and read receipts. Google reported in May 2025 that more than a billion RCS messages were being sent daily in the United States after Apple joined. But encryption was the missing piece. Apple and Google had both said they would work with the GSMA on a standard, and the result is Universal Profile 3.0, which standardises MLS-based end-to-end encryption across vendors.
MLS is the same family of group-key protocols designed to handle large, changing membership efficiently, which is why it suits group chats better than one-to-one schemes bolted onto SMS. Apple helped publish the profile, which signals that the iPhone side will track the standard rather than a private extension.
What it means in practice
For most people the change will be nearly invisible, which is the point. There is no new app to download and no key-verification ritual to learn. Update the phone, keep texting, and look for the lock. For those who care, the Messages settings toggle lets an iPhone owner turn the feature off.
The practical limits are about the network, not the phones. Because each leg of the conversation depends on carrier support for the latest RCS version, the first weeks will produce a patchwork: some pairs of contacts will get locks, others will not, and the user has little control over why. Business traffic is a separate story. Sender-branded messages such as delivery notices and verification codes ride a different pipeline, and the current rollout does not cover them.
Security researchers and privacy advocates had long pointed out that SMS and unencrypted RCS are exposed to carriers and to anyone who compromises them. Moving the default for personal chats to encrypted does not make metadata disappear, but it does remove the message contents from that exposure for people on supported networks.
What to watch
- Carrier coverage: encryption is only as universal as the slowest carrier, and Apple's beta label suggests the rollout will be uneven.
- Whether the lock icon is clear enough that people can tell encrypted threads from fallbacks.
- Adoption by other RCS clients beyond Google Messages.
- Pressure on the remaining gaps: business messaging and SMS fallback.
Sources
- iPhone-Android RCS Conversations Are End-to-End Encrypted in iOS 26.5 — MacRumors
- iOS 26.5 is out, bringing encrypted RCS messaging to iPhone and Android users — Help Net Security
- End-to-end encrypted RCS messaging begins rolling out today for Android and iPhone users — Google (The Keyword)
- Key RCS statistics and market insights for 2026 — Infobip
