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Text messages sent between iPhones and Android devices will soon benefit from end-to-end encryption (E2EE), after the GSM Association (GSMA<\/a>) yesterday published new specifications<\/a> for the Rich Communication Services (RCS<\/a>) protocol that include support for cross-platform E2EE.<\/p>\n RCS is a longstanding effort to enable SMS-style cross-platform communications with richer features, such as group messaging, typing indicators, read receipts, and file-sharing \u2014 similar to what messaging apps such as WhatsApp provide.<\/p>\n While many<\/a> Android handset makers had adopted<\/a> RCS through the years<\/a>, Apple was the main outlier until it finally succumbed with the introduction of iOS 18 last year<\/a>. Most of the core RCS features have been available for cross-platform messaging since then, but E2EE has hitherto been missing \u2014 until now. <\/p>\n E2EE, for the uninitiated, is a data encryption method that ensures only the sender and the recipient of a message can read its content. For tech companies, this privacy-preserving promise is a major selling point, as it assures users that their messages are safe from surreptitious snooping. Apple has offered E2EE since it launched iMessage back in 2011<\/a>, though of course that only worked between iOS devices, while WhatsApp completed its E2EE rollout in 2016<\/a> (and, again, it only worked between WhatsApp users). <\/p>\n Google, for its part, has previously<\/a> added E2EE to its own Messages app<\/a>, but encrypting messages across not only different clients but entirely different platforms comes with its own unique challenges. That\u2019s where the GSMA\u2019s universal profile<\/a> enters the fray, providing a standardized specification for consistent, interoperable RCS messaging across devices, networks, and operators.<\/p>\n Based on the cryptographic Messaging Layer Security (MLS<\/a>) protocol, the new E2EE mechanism in the RCS Universal Profile 3.0<\/a> is a vital piece of the interoperable jigsaw, one that will ultimately enable iPhone and Android users to communicate securely via their device\u2019s native messaging app. <\/p>\n \u201cThat means that RCS will be the first large-scale messaging service to support interoperable E2EE between client implementations from different providers,\u201d GSMA technical director Tom Van Pelt said in a statement<\/a>. \u201cTogether with other unique security features such as SIM-based authentication, E2EE will provide RCS users with the highest level of privacy and security for stronger protection from scams, fraud and other security and privacy threats.\u202f\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\nSelling point<\/h2>\n