Apple has released new developer beta version operating system of iOS and iPadOS. It has added end-to-end encryption facility to the Rich Communication Services (RCS) message. Currently, this feature is running experimentally on iOS and iPadOS 26.4 beta. It may be released to general users in future iOS, iPadOS, macOS and WatchOS updates.
Public concern: Although we ourselves have not yet updated to the 26.4 beta version, for the safety of the public, we recommend: wait until the beta version is released as an Apple stable version system, as it is still in a testing state.
According to Apple, end-to-end encryption is still in the experimental stage. As a result, it can be found in all devices or all mobile operators. The company says conversations that have the ‘encrypted’ symbol will be completely protected under encryption. As a result, no third party can read the message midway while sending it from one device to another. But for now this facility will be limited only to RCS conversations between Apple devices. Apple has said that this encryption will not be effective in messages sent through other means such as Android.
The RCS message encryption testing initiative came almost a year later. Last year the GSM Association (GSMA) officially announced end-to-end encryption support in the RCS protocol. Apple needs to update to RCS Universal Profile version 3.0 to implement this feature. It is based on the Messaging Layer Security (MLS) protocol.
Apple has added another important advantage to strengthen security in the new beta version. In this, applications can come under the full protection system of Memory Integrity Enforcement (MIE) technology. Earlier this facility was limited to soft mode only, the company said. Apple unveiled MIE technology in September last year. It is primarily designed to counter high-quality spyware attacks. Apple claims it can protect critical parts and more than 70 user processes, including active memory protection systems and kernels all the time. The company also said that there is no impact on performance in this case.
Meanwhile, technology website MacRumors said that the ‘Stolen Device Protection’ feature in iOS 26.4 version can be launched for all iPhone users by default. This feature will add additional security to sensitive tasks. Face ID or Touch ID verification will be mandatory to enter the password or credit card stored outside the known place such as home or workplace. Apart from this, an hour delay has also been added in changing the password of the Apple account. This measure has been taken so that users can quickly identify the device as lost if it is stolen.