End of the green bubble: Apple and Google enable encryption between iPhone and Android

The move, which began yesterday and is now gradually rolling out, marks a turning point in the long war between the “blue bubble” of iPhone users and the “green bubble” of Android users. For years, conversations between iPhones have enjoyed end-to-end encryption through iMessage while conversations between Android devices have received encryption over Google’s messaging services.

But when the worlds met, i.e. when an iPhone user wrote to an Android user, communication often descended to the level of old, limited and less secure SMS or MMS messages.

Now the picture changes. According to announcements by Apple and Google, RCS encryption between iPhone and Android is starting to work in beta, initially for iPhone users running iOS 26.5 with mobile operators that support the service, and Android users running the latest version of Google Messages.

Encryption should be enabled by default, and will be added gradually to new and existing conversations. Users will be able to tell that the conversation is protected when they see a lock icon in the chat.

It is important to emphasize: this is not the encryption of the old SMS itself. SMS is an old standard, limited and not end-to-end encrypted. The change is based on RCS, a more advanced standard designed to replace the old messages and add capabilities that have been known for years from messaging apps: typing prompts, read confirmations, emoji responses, sending higher quality photos and videos, longer messages, and now also end-to-end encryption between different operating systems.

End-to-end encryption means that the content is encrypted on the sending device and opened only on the receiving device. Along the way, neither the cellular provider, nor the company that operates the service, nor external parties are supposed to read the content of the message. From the point of view of the users, this is a particularly important layer of protection against hackers, information leaks, unauthorized surveillance and disclosure of private correspondence.

However, as with any encryption service, protection does not solve everything: if one of the devices is hacked, if the user takes a screenshot, or if an unsecured backup is made, the content can still be exposed.

The move comes after years of Google pressuring Apple to adopt RCS. Apple, which jealously guarded iMessage as a closed and attractive system for iPhone users, avoided full support for the standard for a long time.

Despite this, Apple continues to make it clear that iMessage remains the preferred way for it to communicate between Apple devices. In other words, the company opens the door to a significant improvement in communication with Android, but does not give up the marketing advantage of its closed ecosystem.

For users in Israel, the practical meaning still depends on the actual deployment. The service is in beta, so not every user will see it right away. A software update is required on the iPhone, support from the cellular operator, and on the Android side the use of the latest version of Google Messages. Those who do not meet these conditions may continue to see conversations that are not encrypted, or those that revert to the old messaging standard. That is why the lock symbol will be the most important sign: it is the one that will confirm that the conversation between the iPhone and Android is indeed encrypted.