GSMA is working to encrypt end-to-end communications between iPhone and Android using the RCS protocol

The global telephone operator organization GSMA has announced that it is working to implement end-to-end encryption (E2EE) for communications between iPhone and Android devices using the RCS protocol, available on Apple terminals with the arrival of iOS 18.

RCS It is a standard that focuses on messaging and allows for more dynamic and secure conversations than SMS and MMS messages. In their chats, only available for certain devices, service providers and operators, you can share high-resolution photos and videos or know when someone is typing.

Apple announced last November that it would adopt this protocol in its native messaging app, iMessage, to be able to send and receive messages using data or WiFi between iPhone users and Android devices.

The firm introduced RCS – available in the Google Messages app since 2019 – in the second beta of iOS 18 to offer a better interoperability experience and differentiating these messages from iMessage messages in the color of their characteristic bubbles, which are displayed in green color.

With the implementation of iOS 18 this Monday, users can now communicate with other users through this standard, as well as take advantage of features such as high-quality multimedia file sharing or improved group messaging.

However, they cannot benefit from a feature that protects these communications, end-to-end encryption (E2EE), which is integrated by default in the Apple app, but not in the adaptation of the RCS protocol.

The GSM Association, which develops the standard and is also known as the GSMA, has now announced that it is working to enable E2EE for messages sent between iPhones and Androids via this route, so that users can benefit from stronger protections against scams, fraud and other security threats.

Specifically, the organization has indicated that “the next important milestone is that the RCS Universal Profile – the globally agreed standard to implement the protocol – adds important user protections, such as “Interoperable Endpoint Encryption” and “between different computing platforms.”

“It will be the first implementation of standardized and interoperable message encryption between different computing platforms, which will address relevant technical challenges such as key federation. or cryptographically reinforced group membership,” has clarified in this statement.