How can I turn off encrypted messages?

imrealistic wrote:

How can I turn off encrypted messages?

There is no option to turn off encrypted messages. If you don't want your messages encrypted, then send them SMS, as that is the only messaging protocol that does not encrypt them. With that said, it is not clear what the reason is that you want to turn off encrypted messages.

Sweetmax4-19 wrote:

How to end iMessage encrypted on phone so that I can send text messages

You can't, and you should not need to. Messages being encrypted does not prevent you from sending them in any way. You are asuming incorrectly that the encryption is the cause of your issues.

If you explain what happens when you send text messages exaclty and what device you are trying to send them from, someone here may be able to help you resolve the issue.

Do note, iPads cannot send text messages on their own to Android devices, they require an iPhone using the same Apple Account for that to work.

click here ➜ Forward text messages from your iPhone to other devices - Apple Support

BrendaDReilly wrote:

When encrypted is at top of text the text can’t be delivered. How can I change this please?

Seeing an encryption label on the top of a message is new, but your iMessages have always been encrypted, actually for the last 15 years ever since the service launched and there has been no change there. With the recent addition of RCS messages there are 2 variants depending on your Cellular provider and the Recipients cellular provider as well as Settings on each device where those can either be encrypted or not. The label you see now is to let you know which messages contain the encryption supported by both devices.

If you are having trouble sending iMessages, then you are most likely having a connection problem whether that is using Cellular Data or Wifi. Also, iMessages don't travel over the voice band like a SMS message, so it is possible to be able to receive cell calls and send SMS messages, while the iMessages that must travel over an internet connection may not be possible. That has always been the case and why iMessages can fallback to SMS when no internet connection is available, but still possible to send them using SMS.

The label you now see is not the problem and either is the encryption on those iMessages that have always been there. Along with reading the information that has been provided here, also review the Support Article with trouble sending iMessages.

If you can't send or receive messages on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support

.

ariela56 wrote:

Ok so my old and new iPad have this problem my old iPad could not receive messages but then when I got my new iPad I asked my friend why I couldn’t see her messages then i

The old iPad and the new iPad both need to be using the same Apple Account, and iCloud Messages should be enabled on both.

To see if the same Apple Account is used, open Settings, and tap on your name at the top of the left column. Then at the top right, you’ll see Apple Account, a round photo or image you’re using, your name, and just below your name your Apple Account. You’ll want the same account on both iPads.

Then here is how to:

• Set up Messages on iPad - Apple Support
• Set up iCloud for Messages on all your devices - Apple Support

she said it was because it was encrypted

Well, I’m not clear what was intended here with that, as Apple Messages iMessage messages have always been encrypted (blue bubbles), and that encryption can’t be turned off.

Maybe some confusion over contact key verification, which is an additional security feature, and seemingly not applicable here?

SMS carrier text messages are unencrypted (green bubbles), but iPad can’t send or receive any SMS carrier messages without also having an iPhone involved, among other details.

and I have no idea how to turn it off I tried everything and I still don’t know what to do

I’d here suggest undoing whatever settings might have been changed when you “tried everything”, then checking the Apple Account, Messages setup, and iCloud Messages settings. (Links above.)

This is unrelated to encryption. The iPhone doesn’t have a reliable cellular data or Wi-Fi connection, and is dropping back to SMS.

Why are my iPhone messages green? - Apple Support

If you can't send or receive messages on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support

It’s quite possible the Wi-Fi or cellular connection is marginal on one or both phones, and SMS is working while the Wi-Fi or cellular data is marginal or unavailable. The Apple iMessage service could also be offline.

If this persists in specific locations, check the Wi-Fi or check the number of “bars” shown for cellular coverage, and (for cellular) also have with a discussion with the carrier.

If your phones support it, set up Satellite messaging, too.

About Messages via satellite - Apple Support

And for completeness, if you’re sharing an Apple Account, stop doing that. That sharing causes various issues.

faire288 wrote:

My messages are encrypted and need to be unencrypted

Encryption cannot be turned off for iMessages. Full Stop.

Encryption is also not the root of any issues you may be encountering as it has always been on for iMessages.

SMS messages are sent unencrypted always and encryption cannot be turned on for them.

Welcome and thank you for reaching out. 😉

End-to-end encryption cannot be disabled and has nothing to do with your issue.

Try the following steps:

• Disable any VPN connections and restart your iPad or tell Siri: "Restart".
• Learn how to update your iPad to the latest version of iPadOS
• Learn what to do if your iPad won’t update.

Sign in issue:

Learn what to do → If you can’t turn on or sign in to iMessage.

Connection issue:

Learn what to do → If you can't send or receive messages.

Need more help?

• Contact Apple Support if you still can't send or receive iMessages
• Contact your carrier if you still can't send or receive SMS, MMS or RCS messages

Additional help:

• United States: 1-800-APLCARE.
• Contact Apple Support.
• Get Support.

Good Luck! 👋🏼😉

Smiliñ 😎 Brian

slitteral1 wrote:

It is preventing my wife from receiving messages in groups we are both part of.

Nope. Encrypted messages as mentioned mny times already should not prevent anyeon from receivign them. They get decrypted upon reception on each device.

If your wife is having issues it's definitely caused by sometihng else, not the encrtupted messages which has been a thing for many, many years now.

I don’t want or need encrypted messages and it isn’t up to Apple that I do need my messages encrypted.

Not a choice you get to make. Encryption is on by defualt and cannot be turned off. But since it has always been on, and was not causing any issue before, it''s hard to imagine it would just suddenly now cause the issues you report.

Instead of assuming encruypted messages are causing your issue without any basis for it, why not tell us what happens when you send a message to your wife in a group chat exactly.

And if you get any error messages related to that, what they say.

slitteral1 wrote:

Encryption was not showing in messages until last night and then she was unable to receive messages from our daughter. My did not show as encrypted and I have no problem getting responses from our daughter.

• No SMS messages are encrypted as that protocol does not support encryption.
• The iMessage protocol (blue bubble) will always be encrypted.
• When internet access is not available on either device, an iMessage will default back to SMS and that has nothing to do with encryption. The encryption message you see is just for your benefit to confirm the protocol you are using has your messages encrypted. The RCS protocol also includes encryption when it is supported by both carriers and the encryption message you see will also confirm if the RCS message is using encryption.
• If you never want to use Encryption, you can turn both RCS and iMessage off where your communications will always be SMS and not encrypted. Both SMS and RCS are a carrier provided service.
• The difference in each of those protocols is detailed in the Support Article provided by MrHoffman and I will include it again here.

What is the difference between iMessage, RCS, and SMS/MMS? - Apple Support

riktov wrote:

Whatever reasons I may have for wanting to turn off encryption are mine alone.

You can't turn off encryption for iMessage when sending from one device to another no matter what your reason is. You would need to turn off iMessage and use SMS where your messages would not be encrypted.

It is not possible to use Messages in iCloud without a Passcode, but you can use Messages without iCloud sync and not need a Passcode. The encryption of Messages in iCloud has nothing to do with the device to device encryption of a message between 2 parties.

There are 2 things that come into play when talking about encryption so it is not clear which one you are referring to:

• Sending messages with iMessage are encrypted between you and the recipient and that is what you see on the Messages screen where your communication is encrypted. This has nothing to do with Messages in iCloud for syncing across other devices. The key to the encryption is the Apple Account used to sign into iMessage and no Passcode is needed.
• If you are using Messages in iCloud, then those messages are encrypted using the Passcode of the device to store them on Apple servers. That encryption is completely separate then the device to device encryption of a Message that uses your Apple Account alone for the encryption.

pinyora wrote:

would the receiver able to receive the message from the sender when the phones on the sender side say, I phone encrypted and the lock sign?

You will want to be using the most current version of iOS and iPadOS, 27.2. Update if not.

iMessage is only encrypted, always encrypted, and with no means to disable that encryption.

You can switch to using only SMS or optionally-encrypted RCS, if unencrypted comms are needed.

Do y’all reside in a place where encrypted comms might be subject to intentional disruption, or have y’all been traveling across different countries or regions, or maybe using a phone-number-format Apple Account?

Yramnellebonnie412 wrote:

How do I turn off texts from being “Encrypted”?

Could you explain the issue you’re encountering here, as it’s probably not related to encryption.

As for your question…

Apple Messages app using iMessage is always end-to-end encrypted, and there is no way to turn that off.

Apple Messages app using SMS is not encrypted. No means to enable encryption.

Apple Messages app using RCS may or may not be encrypted. No controls for that, either.

More: What is the difference between iMessage, RCS, and SMS/MMS? - Apple Support

Other messaging apps vary.

@Wigal

As mentioned in the answer above by Mac Jim ID, there is no option to disable the encryption in Messages, unless you use SMS to text, which does not encrypt the message before sending it.

Tin brook wrote:

Apparently, it is a problem with the encryptions….. up until now most people have not had a problem sending text to SMS participants…. And God forbid if you send a group text to both iPhone and android users then nobody gets the **** text…..

A problem with sending iMessages is the result of an internet connection not available, either through WiFi/Cellular Data (not voice) or activation issue with iMessage. Nothing to do with encryption there. Sending group texts to both iPhone and Android users is not using iMessage at all and will always be unencrypted using SMS, while RCS does offer encryption where both users must be on a cellular service that supports it and also the encryption for the RCS protocol can be turned off for those cellular providers that don't support the encryption.

Turn on RCS messaging on your iPhone - Apple Support

jrunser wrote:

Sending encrypted fails and sending SMS succeeds. And it’s not encryption?

Correct! SMS travels across the same band as your voice calls and iMessages use either Cellular Data or Wifi.

• With no internet connection from Cellular Data or Wifi, iMessage will fail.
• Without the ability to make phone calls, then SMS will fail.
• You can enable Airplane Mode, turn off WiFi Calling, and still have a WiFi connection where all SMS messages will fail and iMessage would succeed.
• You could turn off Cellular Data and WiFi, then iMessage would fail and only SMS would succeed.

Nothing to do with encryption. Seeing that a message is Encrypted is a benefit to you so you are assured your communications cannot be intercepted. It used to be that all blue messages were encrypted and all green ones were not, so it was easy to differentiate. Now with RCS messages, those can also be encrypted and will show as green, so a green message can either be Encrypted or not and you have the label on the message to make it clear.

Which app do you use to send messages?

"Encrypted Messages" means, that messages can not be read by other people while they are being sent, or read on your device without knowing the passcode for your device:

...

End-to-end encryption protects your iMessage and FaceTime conversations across all your devices. With watchOS, iOS, and iPadOS, your messages are encrypted on your device so they can’t be accessed without your passcode. iMessage and FaceTime are designed so that there’s no way for Apple to read your messages when they’re in transit between devices. You can choose to automatically delete your messages from your device after 30 days or a year or keep them on your device indefinitely. Messages sent via satellite also use end-to-end encryption to protect your privacy.

...

copied from: Manage safety settings in Messages - Apple Support

riktov wrote:

Whatever reasons I may have for wanting to turn off encryption are mine alone.

Whatever your reasons, iMessage did not, does not, and will not have that no-encryption option.

Have you enabled satellite messaging, because that works with little more than a sky view, without needing cellular data or SMS coverage.

slitteral1 wrote:

Encryption was not showing in messages until last night and then she was unable to receive messages from our daughter. My did not show as encrypted and I have no problem getting responses from our daughter.

Cellular data failed.

The chat reverted to SMS.

If problems with cellular data persist, check with your carrier.

faire288 wrote:

My messages are encrypted and need to be unencrypted

Use SMS.

Read the previous replies for more info.

Nothing worth encrypting and slowing down texting. She had tried to text our daughter last night and as of today still hasn’t got an answer. This morning while driving to work daughter responded to me in a group we are all apart of and my wife is not receiving messages that I am. The only thing that has changed is some messages have started showing up as encrypted. It seems to be hit or miss.

I don’t want or need encrypted messages and it isn’t up to Apple that I do need my messages encrypted.

From my understanding, it absolutely is.

If you take the time to read all of the helpful responses, you wouldn’t be wasting your time questioning this.

Smiliñ 😎 Brian | Community Volunteer

And what is your understanding that makes it important for me to have encrypted messages? I have not read any messages from people having trouble with them that makes want them, and I certainly do not need them.

Encryption was not showing in messages until last night and then she was unable to receive messages from our daughter. My did not show as encrypted and I have no problem getting responses from our daughter.

jrunser wrote:

Sending encrypted fails and sending SMS succeeds. And it’s not encryption?

Cellular data communications implementation is different from cellular SMS connections, and your cellular data connection is marginal or not working, while your cellular SMS connection is working.

A cellular data connection has and needs and uses more bandwidth within the carrier data network, while SMS messages use what amounts to left over bandwidth within the carrier voice network.

Two different paths: the low-bandwidth (voice) path is working (SMS), while the higher-bandwidth (data) path is not.

The increase in total data involved for encrypted data over not-encrypted data is negligible, which points to a voice connection that is itself probably marginal, or a constraint or coverage or failure somewhere in the data path.

As for fallbacks: is satellite messaging now configured here?

Apparently, it is a problem with the encryptions….. up until now most people have not had a problem sending text to SMS participants…. And God forbid if you send a group text to both iPhone and android users then nobody gets the **** text…..

BrendaDReilly wrote:

When encrypted is at top of text the text can’t be delivered. How can I change this please?

That means your cellular data connection is not working.

That might be a problem with the cellular network, gaps in the network, or maybe other issues.

Options: verify the connection with better coverage and a different location, or review your cellular data connection with your carrier, or use SMS, or use a different app.

For additional details, please read the replies in this thread.

Lately I’ve been getting messages that say they are encrypted. But the problem is when I get these a the previous messages from tat person have been deleted. I keep some messages exactly have pertinent info. Why is this happening. It never did before.

Hankspend1 wrote:

Lately I’ve been getting messages that say they are encrypted. But the problem is when I get these a the previous messages from tat person have been deleted. I keep some messages exactly have pertinent info. Why is this happening. It never did before.

This appears to be a different question.

iPhone or iPad or Mac, which version, and which messaging app? Apple Messages using SMS or RCS?

Same sender with same email or same phone number?

How to end iMessage encrypted on phone so that I can send text messages

How can I turn off encrypted messages?

I am not having troubles sending text messages “Text-SMS”. I am having trouble receiving the response texts from same individuals I sent to.

How do I turn off encrypted messages?

How do I turn off texts from being “Encrypted”?

It is preventing my wife from receiving messages in groups we are both part of.

I don’t want or need encrypted messages and it isn’t up to Apple that I do need my messages encrypted.

slitteral1 wrote:

I don’t want or need encrypted messages and it isn’t up to Apple that I do need my messages encrypted.

Post a screenshot of the encryption-related message, please?

I did. The encrypted tag just started popping up last night and she is now having trouble getting messages from people we have been texting daily with for years.

Sending encrypted fails and sending SMS succeeds. And it’s not encryption?

Whatever reasons I may have for wanting to turn off encryption are mine alone.

When encrypted is at top of text the text can’t be delivered. How can I change this please?

My messages are encrypted and need to be unencrypted

would the receiver able to receive the message from the sender when the phones on the sender side say, I phone encrypted and the lock sign?