Apple prohibits third-party apps that allowed Android users to utilize iMessage for communication with iPhones.
On Saturday, Apple Inc. announced the discontinuation of third-party applications that allowed Android devices to utilize the iMessage service for communication with iPhone users.
The iPhone maker said in a statement that it took steps to protect our users by blocking technologies that use fake credentials to access iMessage. It added that “these technologies posed significant risks to users’ security and privacy, including the potential for exposure of metadata and enabling unsolicited messages, spam and phishing attacks.”
The company said it will continue to make changes in the future to protect its users. The announcement comes a day after Beeper Mini, the latest app to enable iMessage on Android devices, stopped working. Apple’s iMessage, which provides encrypted communications between iPhones, Macs, iPads and other devices made by the company, has resisted calls to extend the service to Android for nearly a decade.
Some users have long argued that the lack of an iMessage app for Android makes messaging between the two platforms less secure. Apple recently announced that it will support RCS, or Rich Communication Services, later next year. It replaces the standard SMS service, which enables a better SMS experience between platforms.
Beeper was founded by Eric Migicovsky, known for creating the Pebble smartwatch in the pre-Apple Watch years and as part of Y Combinator, the tech industry’s most prestigious incubator.
In an interview, Migicovsky said his new company will continue to work on the Beeper Mini and “feels good” about bypassing Apple’s restrictions. He said that the Beeper Cloud – a modification of the Beeper Mini – still works. According to him, Beeper Mini is more secure and connects directly to Apple services, while Beeper Cloud uses third-party servers.
“The passion and energy of people this week is a testament to the importance of what we’re doing,” Migicovsky said. He denied that Beeper Mini poses security problems for users, saying that his app allows encrypted communication between Android and iOS, so the perception of security being compromised is false.
Migicovsky, who said he hasn’t heard from Apple about his service, sold Beeper Mini for a $1.99 monthly subscription after a one-week free trial. Apple does not charge a subscription to use iMessage on its devices.
Apple said it cannot verify that messages sent through unauthorized systems that disguise the use of Apple credentials are actually end-to-end encrypted. Other services, including Sunbird, have previously attempted to make iMessage work on Android. Apple shut down those efforts as well.
Despite adding RCS support next year, Apple executives have publicly and privately rejected the idea of making it easier for iOS and Android users to communicate. Last year, Apple CEO Tim Cook suggested that a user who wanted an easier way to message his mother on Android should buy her an iPhone.
Apple’s head of software engineering, Craig Federighi, said in an email to executives several years ago that “iMessage on Android would simply remove a barrier for iPhone families to give their kids Android phones.”
The company’s operating systems will open up further next year in the European Union with the Digital Market Act, which requires Apple to allow third-party app stores in the region.
