End-to-End Encrypted Texts Between Android and iPhone Are on the Way

The days of "green bubbles" and the frustration they cause among iPhone users are finally coming to an end. The GSM Association, responsible for many widely used telecom standards, has announced that its Rich Communication Services (RCS) protocol will now support end-to-end encryption for cross-platform texting.

This means that text messages sent between Android and iOS devices—unlike blue-bubble iMessage texts or Android-to-Android messages—are no longer vulnerable to surveillance or interception. Until now, Apple and Google had both supported RCS's other features in texts sent between iOS and Android, but not end-to-end encryption.

The new privacy feature is a significant development in the world of mobile messaging, and it's unclear exactly when it will be launching. However, for those who value their privacy, apps like WhatsApp or Signal are still excellent choices for sending cross-platform messages.

America’s Top Cybersecurity Agency Gets a New Head

The White House has tapped Sean Plankey to run the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the agency within the Department of Homeland Security primarily responsible for American digital defense.

Plankey, long considered the leading contender for the role, served in multiple cybersecurity positions in the first Trump administration and previously held senior roles in US Cyber Command. He earned a Bronze Star for hacking operations in Afghanistan during his time in DOD.

CISA has faced hundreds of personnel cuts in recent weeks, and its previous director, Chris Krebs, came under harsh criticism from President Trump for the agency's work to counter disinformation and secure elections. Krebs was fired in a tweet near the end of his term after CISA described the 2020 election as "the most secure in American history."

Elon Musk Visits the National Security Agency

The Wall Street Journal reported that Musk visited the intelligence agency in Fort Meade, meeting with leadership to discuss staff reductions and operational changes. Despite being one of the most insulated branches of US intelligence, the NSA has still found itself pulled into Musk's orbit.

Musk publicly called for an overhaul of the intelligence and cybersecurity agency on social media, posting a graphic featuring college-aged people of color and a list of universities where the NSA was conducting outreach. The move seems to be mocking the agency's recruitment efforts.

A Buzzy Crypto Cracking Firm Had a Hidden CoFounder Accused of Sexual Assault

The cryptocurrency recovery firm Unciphered has made headlines with its feats of whitehat wallet cracking on behalf of customers who have lost access to their cryptocurrency fortunes.

However, The Washington Post reports that one of the cofounders of the company, Morgan Marquis-Boire, was later accused of sexually assaulting multiple women. The reported involvement of Marquis-Boire, who has largely disappeared from the cybersecurity world after facing the sex crime accusations in 2017, was kept secret from even many of the startup's staff.

The revelations have left the company in "disarray," according to the Post. Satter is now fighting a different battle following publication of that story. In late 2023, his Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card—a kind of international citizenship extended to foreign citizens of Indian origin and those married to Indians—was revoked around the same time as the judge filed the injunction.

A Reporter Behind an Indian Hacker-for-Hire Story Is Fighting to Regain His Citizenship

Raphael Satter, a reporter behind an in-depth feature on Appin Technology—a startup that allegedly hacked numerous celebrity and civil society targets on behalf of clients—is now fighting to regain his citizenship.

A group with a similar name responded by suing, and obtained a court ruling that for a time successfully censored Reuters' story—a remarkable case of an Indian judge restricting free speech internationally. Satter is petitioning a Delhi court to reverse the revocation of his OCI card, which has prevented him from entering India to visit family there.