Many iPhone users are now running iOS 26, which brings a number of striking features, including the Liquid Glass aesthetic. Apple continuously pushes out updates to keep your device up to date and secure. The latest update, iOS 26.5, rolls out something many users have been requesting for years: end-to-end encryption for RCS messaging (in beta) with supported carriers. This means that neither Apple nor Google can read your messages while they are in transit.
“When RCS messages are end-to-end encrypted, they cannot be read whilst being sent between devices. Users will know that a conversation is end-to-end encrypted when they see a new lock icon in their RCS chats. Encryption is on by default and will be automatically enabled over time for new and existing RCS conversations,” Apple said in a statement.
You may be wondering what RCS actually is, and how it compares to iMessage and standard SMS texting.
iMessage is Apple’s exclusive messaging platform, used whenever you text someone on an Apple device — be it an iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, or Vision Pro. Because iMessage is Apple’s own proprietary service, the company has added a wealth of advanced features over the years, including stickers, end-to-end encryption, and much more. iMessages appear as blue bubbles in the Messages app.
SMS is the standard way of sending text messages or low-resolution images between any two phone numbers. It is a universal feature offered by mobile carriers, so if you are not messaging another iPhone via iMessage — or you receive an automated message — it is most likely SMS. SMS messages appear as green bubbles in the Apple Messages app.
RCS is a modern messaging standard that sits somewhere between iMessage and SMS. The latest update marks an important step forward: you can now have encrypted conversations across the iOS and Android divide. Android users will need to be running the latest version of Google Messages.