Apple has released the first beta of iOS 17.2 , and it includes a new security feature for iMessage. Contact Key Verification gives users confidence that they’re actually messaging who they think they’re messaging. In this article, we’ll explain how this feature works and how to enable it.
Checking the contact key
When Contact Key Verification is enabled, it will automatically alert you if iMessage key distribution services recognize device keys that haven’t been verified (for example, if an unrecognized device has been added to an iMessage account).
While there haven’t been any such attacks yet, Apple will be one step ahead of hackers by releasing this feature in iOS 17.2.
While this level of security is only needed by a very small percentage of iPhone users, enabling it will not affect the operation of your iPhone or iMessage.
How to enable iMessage contact key verification
Important : All devices linked to your iCloud account must be running iOS 17.2, macOS 14.2, or watchOS 10.2.
- On an iPhone with iOS 17.2, open the Settings app .
- Select your name at the top.
- Scroll down the screen to the very bottom.
- Select “Contact Key Test” .
- Turn on verification in iMessage.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to enable the feature.
This is roughly what the process looks like on an iPhone:
