The Ghanaian public is being alerted by the Ministry of National Security regarding the identification of a recently discovered malicious malware embedded in modified versions of WhatsApp and Telegram designed for Android devices.
According to a statement directed to the Minister of Communications, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, the malware was uncovered through research conducted by Kaspersky, a multinational cybersecurity firm.
Kaspersky has revealed that the newly identified malware, named ‘CanesSpy,’ operates in Arabic and Azerbaijani code.
This malware poses a significant threat as it has the capability to extract sensitive information, including International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI), phone number, mobile country code, mobile network code, and details of the victim’s contacts and accounts at intervals of five (5) minutes.
“Meanwhile, Meta, WhatsApp’s parent company has filed a lawsuit against three (3) developers in China and Taiwan, for distributing unofficial WhatsApp applications, including HeyMods, that compromised over one million user accounts,” the National Security’s statement noted.
As a response to this situation, Minister for National Security, Albert Kan-Dapaah, urges the Minister for Communications and Digitalisation, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, to promptly address this issue, considering the substantial user base of both WhatsApp and Telegram platforms among Ghanaians.
