What does iMessage Contact Key Verification mean? And when will it reach users?

Mones Hawass Books

Sunday, May 21, 2023 05:00 PM

At the end of last year, Apple announced iMessage Contact Key Verification, a tool the company said would allow those faced with “unusual digital threats” to protect their conversations from malicious actors.

At the time, the company promised that the security feature would arrive sometime in 2023, and now, just over two weeks before the start of WWDC 2023, it looks like this tool might arrive with iOS 16.6.

What is iMessage Contact Key Verification?

A security feature that allows Apple’s chat app for users to verify that they’re only messaging with people they intend to talk to. Users who have iMessage Contact Key Verification enabled will receive automatic alerts if “exceptionally professional hackers” successfully compromise cloud servers and eavesdrop on iMessage conversations. encrypted.

While these things will never happen, Apple says they are for “users who face unusual digital threats – such as journalists, human rights activists, and members of the government.” If you belong to those groups, this could be an important feature for you.

Apple didn’t go into too many details about how Call Key Verification will work when it launches in 2023, however, the company said that users who enable it will be able to compare a contact verification code in person, via FaceTime (which is also end-to-end encrypted). to a party), and through another secure call.