iOS 26.4 Beta 2 Update: Improved Security, New Lock Icon and More Features Revealed

The first sign something changed was not a splashy new emoji or a fresh coat of Apple gloss. It was a tiny lock icon, sitting quietly inside a green-bubble conversation — one of those cross-platform chats that usually feels like it is held together with tape and goodwill.​

Apple has released iOS 26.4 Beta 2, and while the update is stuffed with the sort of micro-tweaks only obsessive beta testers notice, the headline is clear: Apple is widening its test of end-to-end encrypted RCS messaging between iPhone and Android.

In short, iOS 26.4 Beta 2 expands encrypted RCS testing to Android (with a lock icon when active), requires iOS 26.4 on iPhone and the latest Google Messages on Android, will not include full cross-platform encryption in this release, and also adjusts a handful of interface details from 'barely there' to 'definitely noticeable.'

iOS 26.4 Beta 2 Puts a Lock on iPhone-to-Android Texts

With the second beta of iOS 26.4, Apple is testing end-to-end encryption for RCS messages sent between iPhones and Android devices. In practical terms, encrypted messages can now be sent to an Android user, and when encryption is enabled a lock icon appears on the message thread.

There are caveats because of course there are. MacRumors notes encrypted conversations are not available for all devices or carriers during the test period, and the requirements are specific: iPhone users need iOS 26.4, and Android users need the latest version of Google Messages.

What is unusually helpful here is that Apple's own developer release notes for Beta 2 make no pretence that this feature is finished. They state: 'In this beta, RCS end-to-end encryption will become available for testing between Apple and Android devices. This feature is not shipping in this release and will be available to customers in future iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and watchOS 26 releases. End-to-end encryption is in beta and is not available for all devices or carriers. Conversations labeled as encrypted are encrypted end-to-end, so messages cannot be read while they are sent between devices.'

Apple also collaborated with the GSM Association (GSMA) to implement end-to-end encryption, according to MacRumors. The context is important: iMessage already supports end-to-end encryption, and Android's RCS can be encrypted end-to-end for Android-to-Android chats, but full encryption has not been available for iPhone-to-Android conversations.

For everyday users — siblings on different phones, couples split across ecosystems, parents stuck in a family group chat — the appeal is obvious. If a message is private, it should truly remain private, not 'private except for the part where it travels across the internet.'

iOS 26.4 Beta 2 Also Tweaks the Little Things

Beyond the encryption update, iOS 26.4 Beta 2 reads like the kind of changelog that could be missed with a blink, yet it still contains details that shape the software's overall feel. On the Home Screen, the 'Edit' menu now uses a more transparent 'Liquid Glass,' Apple's subtle way of increasing visual sheen.

In Apple's Games app, the search bar has moved from the bottom of the display to the top. It is a small change, but it also acknowledges that thumb-stretch ergonomics matter — particularly on larger iPhones, where the lower edge is crowded with gestures and muscle memory.

The App Store and Apple Music get a small identity-polish moment in their account hubs: 'Apple Account' is now left-aligned and uses the same rainbow logo seen for Apple Account in Settings. In Accessibility, there is a new 'Reduce Highlighting Effects' option under Display and Text Size, a reminder that Apple's most meaningful updates often arrive in the settings most people never open.​

Apple is also making the beta pipeline a little less 'set it and forget it.' If you have betas toggled on but do not install any for a four-month period, Apple will automatically switch you to the public release audience. And yes, for the detail hunters: during an iOS 26.4 update, you can tap the update name to see the software build number.​

Two notes will irritate exactly the people who pay closest attention. MacRumors says there are still no new emoji characters, despite signs of them found in code in the first beta, and Playlist Playground remains limited to the US, not available in Europe and other countries.​

Apple first added RCS support to iPhone with iOS 18.1, bringing features like typing indicators and read receipts to iPhone Android messaging, but encryption has been the missing piece people actually care about. iOS 26.4 Beta 2 does not finish that job, but the lock icon is a blunt little promise that Apple finally intends to.