Google has confirmed a bug that disrupts RCS message delivery in Google Messages, and says a fix is already rolling out. The statement went to Android Authority on October 2. If photos or videos have been refusing to send from your phone, this is the likely cause. It is a Google-side problem, not a fault with your handset or carrier.
What Google actually said
A Google spokesperson gave Android Authority this statement:
We are aware of a bug affecting a subset of Google Messages users that can lead to disrupted RCS message delivery. We are rolling out a fix that will reach everyone over the coming weeks. Please ensure you stay up to date with the most recent version of Google Messages.
Read that carefully, because the wording is broader than the complaints. Google describes disrupted RCS delivery in general. It does not name photos, videos or attachments specifically. It also names no affected phone models.
What users are reporting
The user reports Android Authority gathered center on media attachments. Threads on r/GoogleMessages and r/GooglePixel describe photos, videos and other files failing to send over RCS. One thread is titled around media files not sending at all, another around pictures and Photomojis.
So the pattern people are hitting looks like a media-send failure. Google’s own acknowledgment is written at the level of RCS delivery as a whole. Whether those are exactly the same fault is not something Google spelled out.
When the fix arrives
Google says the rollout is underway and will reach everyone within a few weeks of the October 2 statement. That is as specific as it gets. The statement names no date and no build number.
It is also unclear whether the fix lands through a Google Messages app update or through a broader Google Play system update. The spokesperson’s advice was simply to stay on the latest version of Messages. That only helps if the fix ships in the app itself.
For anyone currently affected, that vagueness is the real cost. Someone who cannot send a photo today has no way to know if the wait is days or a month. Google could have named a target build. It chose not to.
What to do in the meantime
Open the Play Store and make sure Google Messages is on its newest version, since that is the only step Google has asked for. If sends keep failing, your practical fallback is plain SMS or another messaging app until the rollout reaches you. Our earlier guide on the RCS resend setting and three other fixes covers the settings worth checking in the meantime.
Sources: Android Authority, SamMobile
