Messaging Layer Security
last updated: Jul 06, 2025
https://datatracker.ietf.org/wg/mls/about/
The Messaging Layer Security (MLS) protocol, RFC 9420, specifies a key establishment protocol that provides efficient asynchronous group key establishment with forward secrecy (FS) and post-compromise security (PCS) for groups in size ranging from two to thousands.
The MLS WG will maintain the protocol and will work on the following MLS protocol extensions:
- Support for use of MLS in protocols developed by the MIMI working group
- Support for new credential types
- Support for common operational patterns in messaging applications
- Support for quantum resistance
- Framework for safe extensibility
- Detection of lost application messages
- Support for sending messages to individual members of a group
An IETF standard for something like the Signal protocol, which is controlled by and only really available from Signal.
There's a list of