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Apple Doesn’t Have to Open iMessage to Rivals After All, New EU Ruling States

Anubhav — Tue, 13 Feb 2024 15:44:53 +0000

A recent decision by the European Union (EU) has sparked conversations around the regulations of messaging apps, particularly focusing on Apple’s iMessage. The EU, after careful examination, concluded that iMessage doesn’t hold the “gatekeeper” status within Europe’s digital communication sphere. This term applies to platforms that control significant market power and, thus, have specific obligations for interoperability with third-party services. What’s more interesting is that users were nearly convinced that Apple would likely open up iMessage to its rival operating systems, but it seems like that isn’t happening anytime soon. More details here.

EU’s investigation sided with Apple in the end and is now closed.

Apple initially identified iMessage as falling under this category but later revised its stance, suggesting that the app’s usage in Europe didn’t meet the criteria for such a classification. The EU’s investigation into the matter, which also included Microsoft‘s Bing among others, has now been closed, agreeing with Apple’s argument. This means iMessage won’t be compelled to enable cross-platform communication with other messaging services.

Interestingly, this decision arrives amidst Apple’s announcement to support Rich Communication Services (RCS) in iMessage by later 2024. RCS is touted as the next evolution in messaging technology, promising enhanced features over traditional SMS and MMS. Google has been a strong advocate for RCS, urging Apple to adopt this standard to facilitate smoother messaging experiences across Android and iOS devices.

While the EU’s ruling exempts iMessage from being labeled a gatekeeper, it doesn’t negate Apple’s influence in the digital marketplace, nor does it impact the ongoing oversight of Apple and Microsoft’s broader platform services. The EU maintains its vigilance, ready to reassess should market dynamics shift significantly.

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Apple embraces RCS messaging standard for iPhone

Rajesh — Fri, 17 Nov 2023 05:31:31 +0000

In a surprising move, Apple has announced that it will adopt the Rich Communication Services (RCS) standard for messaging, bringing an end to the frustrating green bubble experience for iPhone users when communicating with Android devices.

The company plans to incorporate RCS support into its Messages app next year, significantly improving cross-platform messaging capabilities.

In a statement to 9to5Mac, an Apple spokesperson said:

“Later next year, we will be adding support for RCS Universal Profile, the standard as currently published by the GSM Association. We believe RCS Universal Profile will offer a better interoperability experience when compared to SMS or MMS. This will work alongside iMessage, which will continue to be the best and most secure messaging experience for Apple users.”

RCS, a communication protocol developed by the GSM Association, offers a host of enhancements over the outdated SMS and MMS standards currently used for text messages in iPhones. It enables users to share high-resolution photos and videos, send audio messages, and transfer larger files.

Additionally, RCS enhances security for cross-platform messaging, adds cross-platform emoji reactions, and improves the reliability of group chats across different devices.

Apple’s decision to embrace RCS comes after years of persuasion from Google, smartphone manufacturers, and even regulatory bodies. The company had previously resisted adopting RCS, citing concerns about its potential impact on iMessage, its proprietary messaging platform.

RCS support will be introduced to iPhones via a software update next year. Carriers will also play a crucial role in implementing RCS support to ensure full functionality. In the United States, major carriers like Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T already support RCS.

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Banks Fined $549 Million for Using iMessage and Signal to Hide Business Communications

Oğuz Çakır — Thu, 10 Aug 2023 09:44:35 +0000

Apps like WhatsApp, iMessage, and Signal have become essential in our lives. We like them not just because they’re easy to use and popular, but also because they’re secure and can’t be easily monitored from the outside. But sometimes, privacy might not always be a good thing, especially when used by bank managers. Several US financial companies are being fined a total of $549 million because they couldn’t show company chats from apps like iMessage and Signal. Here are the details…

Banks fined $549 million for hiding messages in iMessage and Signal

Several US financial firms, including Wells Fargo, have been fined $549 million by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for using encrypted messaging apps like Signal and iMessage to hide messages about company business. The SEC found that the firms failed to preserve these messages as required by law, which could have prevented regulators from investigating potential wrongdoing.

The SEC’s investigation began in 2019, after a whistleblower reported that some financial company employees were using encrypted messaging apps to discuss sensitive topics, such as regulatory compliance and customer complaints. The SEC’s investigation found that Wells Fargo employees used iMessage and Signal to send and receive messages about a variety of topics, including:

Bankruptcies
Trading strategies
Customer complaints
Regulatory compliance
Hiring decisions

The SEC found that failure to preserve these messages was a violation of the federal securities laws, which require companies to keep records of all communications about their business. The SEC also found that this financial companies use of encrypted messaging apps created a “culture of secrecy” that discouraged employees from reporting potential wrongdoing.

In addition to Wells Fargo, the SEC also fined BNP Paribas, BNY Mellon, and Morgan Stanley for failing to preserve messages from encrypted messaging apps. The SEC’s actions send a message to all financial firms that they must comply with the law and preserve all records of their business communications, regardless of the platform they are using. Here’s the full list of banks and their settlements with the SEC:

Company Name	Penalty Amount
Wells Fargo Securities, LLC	$125 million
BNP Paribas Securities Corp.	$35 million
SG Americas Securities, LLC	$35 million
BMO Capital Markets Corp.	$25 million
Mizuho Securities USA LLC	$25 million
Houlihan Lokey Capital, Inc.	$15 million
Moelis & Company LLC	$10 million
Wedbush Securities Inc.	$10 million
SMBC Nikko Securities America, Inc.	$9 million
BNP Paribas S.A.	$75 million
Société Générale SA	$75 million
Wells Fargo Bank NA	$75 million
Bank of Montreal	$35 million

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Apple iPhone users in the UK may soon lose iMessage & FaceTime

Sean — Fri, 21 Jul 2023 14:56:14 +0000

Apple might be planning on removing two of its key features from its iPhones in the UK soon. The company’s iMessage and FaceTime platforms could be disabled in the region due to the ongoing regulatory issue.

Apple refuses to comply with the new Online Safety Bill

The Cupertino based giant is in opposition to the new Online Safety Bill similar to WhatsApp and Signal. For those unaware, the UK government is planning on introducing the Online Safety Bill, which will regulate messaging services. In other words, the government will basically be able to monitor your messages to detect CSAM (child sexual abuse material) and other illegal content.

The Online Safety Bill also wants access to end-to-end encryption-based messages. This bill has already faced criticism from WhatsApp and Signal, who have also withdrawn their services from the country. Now, it appears that Apple will also be pulling out the iMessage and FaceTime services since it refuses to make special changes for a single country that can affect its security features. If the bill comes into effect, it will be the biggest threat to the data security and privacy of the UK citizens.

As of right now, the Online Safety Bill is currently under an 8-week consultation period. Tech companies like Apple are hoping that the government will take their feedback into account and revise the bill. So stick around for more as we will be providing updates when additional information is available regarding this matter.

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Apple iMessages are finally making their way to Windows 11

Sean — Thu, 27 Apr 2023 13:35:43 +0000

While the Apple ecosystem is quite convenient for many and offers intuitive functionality, they don’t offer a seamless experience outside of this set ecosystem. However, it appears that the company’s massively popular iMessage platform is finally making its way to the Windows 11 platform.

Apple iMessages will finally work on Windows 11

Microsoft has just announced that it will be rolling out support for the iMessages through the Phone Link app. This update will be available to Windows 11 users and will let users send messages from their iPhones without actually using the smartphone. The Phone Link uses Bluetooth to sync help up your iOS devices. While this feature is already available for Android devices, it will only be available for iPhones in a limited manner.

So iPhone owners can only send and receive messages to others and manage the notifications as well as make phone calls. This is lesser than the many features offered by Phone Link’s functionality on Android devices. Some examples of this is Samsung’s Galaxy S series devices that allow for app streaming to mirror Android apps on your PCs. As per official notes, the company will still take till mid May before iOS syncing is allowed on Windows 11 users.

So for those interested, you can download Phone Link application from the Apple Store if you have an iPhone. Microsoft have been working on this compatibility feature for sometime now. The iMessage arriving on the Windows platform has apparently been in works for around five years now, beginning back in 2018. So this feature will easily be welcomed by many.

iOS 16 Beta 4 makes significant changes to iMessage

Divyansh Mehta — Fri, 29 Jul 2022 03:15:48 +0000

Apple has made a number of significant adjustments and fascinating upgrades to its messaging app with the iOS 16 Beta 4 update.

According to a report from 9to5Mac, “iOS 16 adds the ability to modify and unsend iMessages for the first time – albeit with certain restrictions. The fourth beta of iOS 16 tightens these restrictions even more.

The most recent beta version from Apple “contains a handful of new features and changes involving the messages app, home app, mail app, lock screen notifications” and so forth, claims MacRumours. The edit history, however, “addresses a major omission from Apple’s original implementation of iMessage editing,” according to a report from The Verge.” without a history, the edit feature could theoretically be used to change malicious or mean messages after they were sent. ” the report continued.” According to the study, even if an Apple update that displays a tiny “Edited” notice would alert consumers that “something has changed,” it’s doubtful that the user would “be able to read what was initially stated.”

According to the report, the modifications would reportedly let users message one another and view any alterations that have been made. Intriguingly, the source goes on to clarify that the iOS 16 beta 4 shortens the user’s window of opportunity to cancel an iMessage. This is a noteworthy difference from earlier iterations of iOS 16, in which consumers had a window of opportunity of 15 minutes. “That period of time has been drastically shortened to two minutes with today’s update. However, you still have 15 minutes to make changes to a message.

In the meantime, news outlet ANI published a report last week citing Mashable that claimed Apple has allegedly been deducting a 30% fee from in-app purchases made through the App Store for some time, just as reports surfaced that Netflix and Spotify were offering an external subscription option to their iOS apps. According to the source, a message noting that Apple is not responsible for the transactions being conducted shows in the pop-up window when a user chooses the subscription option in the Netflix app for iOS right now. The app connects the user to the official website so they may finish the remaining steps of the membership purchase procedure when they choose to continue.

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Google executive goes all out against Apple for not incorporating RCS into iMessage

Zohaib Ahmed — Mon, 10 Jan 2022 07:58:40 +0000

Hiroshi Lockheimer, Google’s vice president for Android, Chrome OS, Play, Photos, and Chrome, has tossed perhaps the harshest remarks at Apple yet for its iMessage policy. Accusing Apple of using iMessage to sell more iPhones, he linked the strategy to promoting bullying and peer pressure.

The comments come in the form of a tweet that shared a Wall Street Journal article about iMessage’s dominance and how it has led youngsters that own Androids to feel alienated from their iOS counterparts:

Apple’s iMessage lock-in is a documented strategy. Using peer pressure and bullying as a way to sell products is disingenuous for a company that has humanity and equity as a core part of its marketing. The standards exist today to fix this. https://t.co/MiQqMUOrgn

— Hiroshi Lockheimer (@lockheimer) January 8, 2022

The “documented strategy” the VP is likely referring to is a 2016 email from Apple’s Phil Schiller that recently came to light during the legal tussle with Epic, where the executive expressed that “moving iMessage to Android will hurt us more than help us.”

A similar comment was also made by Craig Federighi, senior vice president of software engineering at Apple: “iMessage on Android would simply serve to remove an obstacle to iPhone families giving their kids Android phones.”

Lockheimer’s comments are a part of the mounting barrage from Google against Apple for its refusal to adopt the RCS standard.

RCS or Rich Communication Services is Google’s answer to iMessage and aims to modernize SMS with features we have grown used to on various chat apps like typing indicators, read receipts, high-quality photos, and more.

iMessage should not benefit from bullying. Texting should bring us together, and the solution exists. Let’s fix this as one industry. https://t.co/18k8RNGQw4

— Android (@Android) January 8, 2022

If Apple opens up the walled garden iMessage is currently to Google Messages, the Google executive insinuates it would reduce the pressure on teens to get an iPhone. iMessage has become a must-have tool for teens in the US, failure to use which does result in bullying, just as the WSJ report says.

Not only that but iPhones and Androids will finally be able to communicate with each other in perfect harmony without having to worry about security. Currently, chats on iMessage are only encrypted when there’s an iPhone at both ends. But when an Android user comes into the picture, chat bubbles turn green and security risks begin to creep in.

Sure, in countries like the US, the green bubble situation isn’t that common of an occurrence considering a whopping 87% of teens own an iPhone. But elsewhere, Android users outnumber Apple users 3 to 1, and the lack of proper compatibility between RCS and iMessage means it’s near impossible to fully secure messaging on iMessage.

WhatsApp & iMessage share the largest amount of user data to the FBI: Leaked Document

Sean — Wed, 01 Dec 2021 13:06:11 +0000

Smartphone users usually have a number of social media platform that they are active on daily. Out of these, there are specific apps that are geared for just messaging. While these apps may sometime contain sensitive information that the user wants to keep private, a leaked document has revealed that two major chatting apps, WhatsApp and iMessage, share quite a bit of data with the FBI.

According to a report from the Rolling Stone (Via AndroidAuthority), the news arrives from a leaked document from FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation), which is a domestic intelligence and security based government service in the US. The document has revealed that Facebook’s WhatsApp and Apple’s iMessage provide the agency with the most amount of information, which it can legally obtain from any messaging application.

As per the document, WhatsApp, iMessage, and Line all offered “limited” message content over a legal request from the FBI. While these platforms willingly offered ‘some’ data, others like Signal, Telegram, Threema, Viber, WeChat, and Wickr did not disclose any message content. Although “limited” data doesn’t raise any alarms, the kind of information being shared might not be that harmless. The popular Android messaging app shares “only basic subscriber records” with a subpoena.

But in simpler terms, it means that the FBI is able to grab address book data from both the ‘target’ and their contacts if they have a search warrant. They can even track the source and destination of the messages sent from the app as well. Meaning, if you have saved the target’s contact info, your address book is also available for the FBI to snoop around in. This is even worse for the iMessage service. If iMessage users back up their messages on iCloud, the FBI has access to the actual message content as the Cupertino based giant is required to hand over iCloud encryption key with a search warrant.