iOS 26.4 beta 2 is now rolling out for developers, and it expands support for testing encrypted RCS messaging on iPhone.
When iOS 26.4 beta 1 was released last week, it added early support for testing RCS encryption, but just for iPhone-to-iPhone messaging. In iOS 26.4 beta 2, however, support is expanding to include messaging between iPhone and Android devices.
Support for testing RCS encryption is rolling out gradually to iPhone users running iOS 26.4 beta 2. Android users, meanwhile, will need to be running the latest beta version of the Google Messages app. Availability will also vary based on carriers.
Once updated to iOS 26.4 beta 2, iPhone users can go to Settings > Messages > RCS Messaging and look for the new “End-to-End Encryption (Beta)” toggle. This should be enabled by default.
Apple has also updated the Messages app interface to accommodate these changes. When you message someone with RCS encryption enabled, you will see a new lock icon in the chat thread. Android users will also see the same lock icon in their message threads.
This lock icon will also appear on all iMessage threads, as iMessage has supported end-to-end encryption since 2011.
As we reported last week, RCS end-to-end encryption will not actually ship as part of iOS 26.4. Instead, it’s included in this beta for testing purposes and Apple says it will be available in a future iOS 26 update.
Apple first added RCS support to iPhone with iOS 18.1, bringing things like typing indicators and read receipts to messaging between iPhone and Android users. Last March, Apple announced its plans to add support for end-to-end encryption for RCS messages.
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