Google promised it would add RCS-based end-to-end encryption (E2E) to group chats in its Messages app. This is a significant step up compared to MMS group messages, which are unencrypted by design. It would also bring the RCS standard up to speed with the Signal protocol, used by both WhatsApp and the Signal messenger itself. According to reports on Reddit, the company is now getting ready to launch this capability widely.
As spotted by multiple people on the Google Messages subreddit, Google Messages seems to be trying to establish end-to-end encrypted connections in RCS groups. The example below shows that the attempt still fails, though. A generic message shows up noting that the message one is trying to view is encrypted and thus not visible—likely because E2E isn’t live for everyone in the group. Making matters more complicated for this group chat in particular is the fact that it doesn’t only consist of Google Messages users but also some on Samsung Messages, which also supports RCS.
Upon further digging, some of the Redditors found out that their Messages app has E2E group chat enabled already. This is evident by reading out the app’s Phenotype flags, which indicate that E2E encryption is enabled for some. However, it’s unclear which version of the Messages app this is exactly and if the switch is dependent on a server-side a/b test or a simple app update.
Group chat E2E disabled vs. enabled
It’s clear that the feature still needs work, too. When chatting in a group with people who can’t receive encrypted messages, the app should fall back to unencrypted messaging as to not exclude anyone from the conversation. Given that the subreddit and the Messages group seems to consist of enthusiasts (the group is called “r/RCSbuddies,” after all), we can presume that most of these people are probably using beta versions of their respective chatting apps, which could lead to this unwanted behavior.
Google initially promised to bring E2E encrypted group chats to Messages during Google I/O 2022, all while one-on-one messages are already encrypted. You can tell if a conversation is E2E encrypted by the lock that shows up next to recently delivered messages.
If you're interested in giving RCS itself a try, be sure to learn how to enable, disable, and use RCS in Messages.
Thanks: Nick