Latest news with #RCS
Forbes
7 hours ago
- Business
- Forbes
Apple May Offer Major Messages Upgrade To Android And iPhone In Days, Report Says
Apple' Messages app could be about to get much better, if a promise that Apple made earlier in the year comes good at WWDC, the company's big developer conference that kicks off on Monday, June 9. That's down to making messaging more secure. As you'll know, until recently, if a green bubble appeared in your messages, it indicated that it was just a regular SMS message, rather than the end-to-end-encrypted message indicated by a blue bubble. Usually, though not always, green bubbles were because the messages came from an Android phone. The trouble with traditional SMS is it's basic and lacks security, so Apple's decision last year to integrate the more advanced RCS Universal profile was welcome, offering more advanced messages between Android and Apple platforms: rich messages with larger media files and audio. In March this year, Apple announced it would be bringing E2EE to RCS. 'End-to-end encryption is a powerful privacy and security technology that iMessage has supported since the beginning, and now we are pleased to have helped lead a cross-industry effort to bring end-to-end encryption to the RCS Universal Profile published by the GSMA. We will add support for end-to-end encrypted RCS messages to iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and watchOS in future software updates,' Apple said. Google swiftly followed suit, saying it was 'committed to providing a secure messaging experience.' Now, 9to5Mac is reporting that since RCS arrived for the iPhone a year ago, that E2EE could be imminent: 'With this capability incorporated into the standard, all Rich Communication Standard (RCS) messaging between iPhone and Android users would be completely unreadable to backend intermediaries—its contents encrypted, scrambled into gibberish, and only unlockable by the decryption key stored on the user devices,' it said. 'What better place to demonstrate Apple's device privacy and security lead,' than at WWDC, the report asks. Just don't expect those green bubbles to go anywhere.
Scoop
9 hours ago
- Business
- Scoop
Royal Commonwealth Society Appoints New Chair And Trustees
The Council of the Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS) has appointed Janet Cooper OBE as Chair to succeed Dr Linda Yueh CBE. Sianne Haldane and Ravi Suchak have been appointed as Trustees. said: 'It has been an immense privilege and pleasure to serve as Executive Chair of this special charity, which has enjoyed extraordinary support from the Society's Patron, His Majesty The King, Vice-Patron, Her Majesty The Queen, and partners from across the Commonwealth. I was deeply honoured to have led impactful programmes which have contributed to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals on education, equality, environment and communities, as well as high profile events that have celebrated the work of remarkable people, including young leaders, who make the world a better place. I am pleased that Janet, Sianne and Ravi will join the Council to enable the RCS to continue to make a positive impact on the lives of citizens in the Commonwealth and beyond.' Janet Cooper OBE said: 'It's a great pleasure and privilege to have been appointed to Chair the Royal Commonwealth Society, to build on the terrific work the RCS has been doing for over 150 years as well as look to the future, in a world which is becoming increasingly polarised and in conflict, the work of the RCS provides an opportunity to focus on youth engagement, climate action and equality initiatives across the Commonwealth.' Janet Cooper OBE is an experienced chair, lawyer, entrepreneur and trustee. She is a nonexecutive director of Nurture Group, an independent director of the Cabinet Office, Chair of ProShare and co-founder of the Global Equity Organisation, both non-profit organisations promoting employee share ownership, and Vice Chair of Roehampton University. Janet was one of the first women partners in global law firm, Linklaters and went on to found a multi award winning specialist law firm which was transferred to a trust for the employees in 2020. She was the first woman to chair the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and former trustee and Vice Chair of the UN Women UK. Janet was appointed an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to equality, women's empowerment and employee share ownership in the 2017 New Year Honours List and is appointed a Fellow of the University of Roehampton in 2024. Dr Linda Yueh CBE has served as Chair since 2018 and as a member of Council since 2016. Janet Cooper OBE, Sianne Haldane and Ravi Suchak will join the Council on June 1.
Phone Arena
2 days ago
- Business
- Phone Arena
Google Messages just did something simple that you'll instantly appreciate
Last month, we shared that Google was working on an update to make it easier to see which of your contacts are using RCS (Rich Communication Services) in Google Messages. And now, it looks like that update is finally starting to roll out. Google Messages has supported RCS for years, but there has always been one major annoyance – no quick way to know who actually has it. Now, that is starting to change. For many users, Google Messages is now showing an RCS badge next to contacts who support the feature. You will see these badges in the contact list that pops up after tapping the "start chat" button. This update isn't fully live yet – it looks like it is currently showing up in the latest beta (version 20250527_01_RC00), so not everyone has it. But the fact that it is rolling out at all means a wider release is probably just around the corner. An RCS badge will appear next to contacts who support the feature. | Image credit – aniruddhdodiya/Reddit This is the kind of quality-of-life improvement that should've happened a long time ago. Before this change, the only way to tell if someone had RCS was to start a chat and see if the message field said "RCS message" or "Text message." Not is also cool is that this new label works whether the other person is using Android or iOS – now that Apple finally gave in and decided to add RCS support to iMessage after holding out for years. So yeah, it is great that Google is making it way easier to see if you are about to message someone who can actually take full advantage of RCS you are not familiar, RCS brings a bunch of modern messaging perks like typing indicators, read receipts, higher-quality image sharing and group chat support – basically, everything you are used to from WhatsApp, iMessage or Messenger. Plus, it offers end-to-end encryption for extra privacy. RCS also doesn't rely on your cellular network like SMS does. Messages are sent over mobile data or Wi-Fi, which makes them faster, capable of handling richer content and essentially free – though keep in mind data usage still counts toward your mobile plan. I've lost track of how many times I've sent a message, only to realize it was actually an SMS that cost me extra (which depends on your plan, of course – mine charges a lot for SMS). So having a way to quickly spot who supports RCS is a big help. With Google updating the New chat contact list (yep, it now says "New chat" instead of "New conversation") to highlight who has RCS, it really feels like it is only a matter of time before this becomes the default on all Android phones.
Android Authority
2 days ago
- Business
- Android Authority
Google Messages finally has an easy way to see who has RCS
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority TL;DR The latest version of the Google Messages app finally makes it easy to see if a contact uses RCS. Contacts now have an 'RCS' badge to the right of their name. This is a welcome departure from having to open a chat with each contact to see if they use it. Google Messages has supported RCS for years now, but one missing feature is the ability to quickly check which contacts are using this standard. We discovered last month that Google was working on RCS labels, and it looks like this feature is finally available to users. 9to5Google and Redditors report that Google Messages now displays a badge next to contacts that have RCS. The badges are displayed in the contact list that appears after you tap the 'start chat' button. The labels are said to be available in the latest beta version of the app (version 20250527_01_RC00), although we can't see them yet on our phones. Check out the screenshot below, courtesy of Redditor anirruddhdodiya. Hadlee Simons / Android Authority Nevertheless, this is a sorely needed quality-of-life feature. There was no quick way to find out which contacts had RCS. Users have to open a chat with a contact and then check whether 'RCS message' or 'Text message' appears in the text field. I quickly found this to be a laborious task, so I'm glad to see Google has finally released a solution. This also comes after we recently discovered several other features coming to Google Messages. For starters, the app will let you share invites to group chats via QR code or URL. Google is also working on @mentions and a faster way to delete videos. Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at Email our staff at news@ . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
CNET
4 days ago
- Business
- CNET
I'm Saying Farewell to the Most Annoying iOS 18 Features on My iPhone. Here's How I Fixed Them
Since Apple launched the very first iPhone model in 2007, I've been a loyal user, and I've always been happy with my iPhone. I'm currently using the iPhone 15 Pro Max while I wait for the new iPhone 17. However, I'm a professional tech journalist and I'm not blind to the problems with the iPhone. The mobile operating software that powers the iPhone is far from flawless. Every new update brings at least a few features or settings that don't mesh well with how I use my phone. That's true of the latest update, iOS 18. Don't get me wrong. There's a lot to like in iOS 18. For instance, I'm a big fan the RCS support, which improves text messaging with Android users. I like that I can also send text messages via satellite when I don't have cell service. And I'm happy that I can finally swap out the two lock screen buttons (which frankly, we should've been able to do for awhile). Also, iOS 18 finally brings ChatGPT to Siri and lets you create your own emoji using generative AI. But then there are also things I hate about the latest iPhone operating system. If you're like me, you're bound to dislike parts of iOS 18, so here are three new features I like the least in iOS 18, and how you can kinda fix them. For more, check out the nine hidden iOS 18 features you should definitely know about. Get rid of all the clutter from the Photos app on iOS 18 OK, I'll straight out say it, I really don't like the overhaul that Apple has given the Photos app on iOS 18. I understand what it's going for, but it feels awfully cluttered by default. I don't want my main camera roll constantly reminding me of vacations or suggestions for wallpapers with photos and videos I'm not looking for. Fortunately, Apple does give you the option to customize the Photos app to your heart's desire. When you open the Photos app for the first time, you'll see a grid of all your photos and videos, which is the library view you're used to, but at the bottom, you'll notice the navigation bar is gone, and instead replaced with collections for photos and videos you've taken recently and have of friends, family and pets. This is what the camera roll looks like now on iOS 18. Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNET If you swipe down, you'll continue to see random collections and albums, like pinned collections, shared albums, memories, trips, featured photos and wallpaper suggestions, all of which used to live in the Albums and For You tabs. Now they're all in one place on iOS 18, which is the main view. And while that may be useful to some, I don't need to see all of it at once. I just want to see my camera roll and some albums. To customize the Photos app, swipe all the way down to the bottom and tap Customize and Reorder. Here you can uncheck any collections you wish to hide from the main view. You can also organize the order in which they appear. I don't want wallpaper suggestions and most of the other options, so I unchecked everything but Media Types (organizes your media into videos, live photos, etc.) and Utilities (albums for hidden, recently deleted, receipts, documents and so on). You can remove or keep as many collections and albums as you like, but for me, the less the better. Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNET Of course, you'll no longer be able to see the collections that Apple has created for you, and several other albums as well, but if you don't use them, you're better off this way, because you can still find any photo or video you want by going through your camera roll or using the search button at the top. This is what my camera roll looks like after I removed all the clutter. Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNET Remove all the new Control Center pages on iOS 18 I use the Control Center all the time, to quickly connect to Wi-FI, enable Do Not Disturb, turn on dark mode or low battery mode and discover new songs with the music recognition control. However, with iOS 18, Apple expanded how the Control Center is designed, and it now has multiple pages of controls, some premade and others you can create yourself. The things is, I don't need multiple Control Center pages -- I just need the one. I don't want the clutter of multiple pages, because I can fit all the controls I need on a single page. But that's not the only issue. I also find that when I now try to swipe out of the Control Center, I end up accidentally scrolling through the Control Center pages, and so I get annoyed. Above you can see the normal Control Center (left) and the new pages (middle and right). Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNET As luck has it, there's an easy way to get the Control Center to look like it used to, with only a single page. In the Control Center, which you can access by swiping down from the top-right of your screen, swipe up to access the additional pages and press your finger down on any blank part of the page. This will highlight the control -- hit the remove control button (-) at the top-left to get rid of the control and the page. Do this for any other extra Control Center pages you have, until you only have the main Control Center. Once you remove the extra Control Center pages, you'll no longer see the page icons on the center-left. Screenshot by Nelson Aguilar/CNET Now when you try to swipe out from the Control Center, you'll no longer get stuck in the other pages. Instead, you'll be able to easily exit like before. Stop accidentally triggering Siri on iOS The big AI upgrade to Siri came with the release of iOS 18.2. Instead of the Siri orb that you're used to, the edges of your iPhone screen will now glow with various colors when the assistant is listening to you. It's a welcome design change, but one aspect of the new ChatGPT-powered Siri keeps annoying me. If you double tap at the bottom center of your iPhone, the Type to Siri feature appears. This allows you to type, instead of speak, to Siri, bringing up a keyboard at the bottom of your screen. It's a useful feature if you're in a situation where you need to be discreet, but I always seem to enable the feature by accident, especially when I'm tapping or swiping around my phone. There is a way to disable Type to Siri though, without completely disabling the assistant. In Settings, go to Apple Intelligence & Siri > Talk & Type to Siri and toggle off Type to Siri. Siri still won't get full AI capabilities for a little while. Nelson Aguilar/CNET For more, check out how to cut through muddy movie dialogue with this new iOS 18 audio feature.
