Apple quickly moved to shut down the Beeper Mini app, a service that allowed Android users to access and send iMessages. This happened just a few days after the Beeper app launched on December 5.

The original Beeper, now known as Beeper Cloud, worked by routing iMessages through a remote Mac computer. But Beeper Mini took a different approach by connecting directly to Apple’s servers, bypassing Beeper’s own servers entirely.

This process even eliminates the need to sign in to the Apple ID app, providing Android users with a seamless iMessage experience. Surprisingly, Apple wasn’t happy. They shut down Beeper Mini, citing potential security risks such as metadata exposure and spam.

Apple confirmed the shutdown with the following statement: “Apple develops our products and services using industry-leading privacy and security technologies designed to give users control of their data and protect personal information. We are taking steps to protect our users by blocking methods that use fraudulent credentials to access iMessage “These practices pose significant risks to user security and privacy, including the disclosure of metadata and creation of spam, spam and phishing attacks. We will continue to make future updates to protect our users.”

Beeper, on the other hand, claims that Beeper Mini is secure and offers better privacy than unencrypted SMS. The company even offered to share the source code with a third party for an independent security evaluation.

Beeper Mini is currently down while Beeper Cloud continues to operate. Beeper unregistered all Android phone numbers on behalf of its users and extended its free trial by another week to compensate for the downtime. Apple also announced that it plans to introduce additional security measures, including iMessage contact key verification, in the upcoming iOS 17.2 update.