Apple’s slow embrace of RCS has always come with caveats. Support arrived with iOS 18, but without the same privacy guarantees as iMessage.
With iOS 26.3 beta 2 approaching, reports from AppleInsider and 9to5Mac suggest Apple could add end-to-end encryption (E2EE) to RCS messages. The potential update was first spotted by developer Tiino-X83.
According to a post he shared on X (formerly Twitter), Apple appears to be introducing carrier bundle settings that would allow mobile carriers to enable or disable E2EE for RCS messaging. The same post also suggests the feature currently appears only for four major mobile carriers in France — Bouygues, Orange, SFR, and Free — with no reports yet from other regions.
Le chiffrement de bout en bout arrive sur le RCS de l’iPhone !
— Tiino-X83 (@TiinoX83) January 12, 2026
Je viens de vérifier les carrier bundles d’iOS 26.3 bêta 2, et Apple a ajouté un nouveau paramètre permettant aux opérateurs d’activer le chiffrement pour le RCS
Pour le moment, aucun opérateur ne l’a encore activé pic.twitter.com/RkFGH5J5ut
This limitation appears to be intentional. Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA) rules require RCS encryption to be enabled for all users in a given market unless local laws prevent it. Carriers are not permitted to offer encryption to some users while withholding it from others, and they must clearly notify users when encryption is unavailable. Nearly all message content must remain encrypted, aside from elements such as typing indicators.
If this update does arrive with iOS 26.3 beta 2, it could significantly improve privacy for iPhone users relying on RCS. That said, it would follow years of pressure on Apple to adopt RCS and support E2EE, particularly since Apple has not supported Google’s own RCS encryption implementation. A GSMA-aligned approach would allow encrypted RCS messaging to work across devices, rather than within a single ecosystem.
There is no confirmation yet that Apple will roll out E2EE for RCS in this beta. It may be an early test, a regional trial, or a feature planned for a later release. It is also possible that it never ships.
Still, the signal is clear. Apple may be preparing for a future where cross-platform messaging between iPhone and Android is not just more functional, but meaningfully secure, narrowing a gap that has existed for far too long.
Emmanuel Oyedeji
