Google Share Texts Messages: Here’s What You Need To Know!

Google has rolled out a new Android feature—RCS Archival—that allows employers to intercept and archive RCS and SMS messages on work-managed Android devices, including Pixel phones. The change mirrors a recent controversy sparked by Microsoft’s workplace-monitoring update in Teams.

According to reporting from Android Authority, the update means that end-to-end encrypted RCS chats in Google Messages are no longer private on corporate-controlled devices. Although messages are encrypted during transmission, they are fully readable once they reach the device—making them accessible to any organization that manages that device.

Google describes the tool as “a dependable, Android-supported solution for message archival,” adding that it works with RCS, SMS, and MMS. Employees will receive a clear on-device notification when archiving is active.

The feature is rolling out now across Android devices used in enterprise environments, with Pixel phones among the first to receive it.

This applies exclusively to work-managed Android devices—phones that an organization controls via enterprise mobility management (EMM). Personal phones are not affected.

While archiving tools have long existed in regulated industries such as finance and healthcare, this update enables any organization to monitor employee text messages on company devices. Many employees assume texting is more private than email, especially with end-to-end encryption in place. This update dismantles that perception.

It highlights a common misunderstanding: end-to-end encryption protects messages in transit, not on the device itself. If your employer manages the device, they control its data.

For employees, that means the once-appealing perk of a company phone now comes with a significant privacy trade-off. Texts—long treated as personal and confidential—may now be subject to the same oversight as work emails.

As companies increasingly blend communication tools with compliance and monitoring requirements, the line between personal and professional digital space is getting thinner than ever.