Deadly Spy Virus Exposes WhatsApp Users, Others To Hackers
…Android Device Users At Risk, As National Security Investigates
The National Security Ministry, together with the Cyber Security Authority, is said to have launched a serious investigation to track a deadly spy virus present in Ghana that exposes android mobile phones and device users on various social platforms, such as WhatsApp, Telegram and others, to hackers and other criminal syndicates.
The malware, called “CanesSpy,”is said to have the potential to compromise such android devices and steal people’s sensitive information, including details about the victims’ contacts and accounts, within every five minutes, when a phone is either switched on or starts charging.
This development, The Anchor gathered, has put millions of users on these social media platforms at risk, forcing the national security and the cyber security experts to launch swift investigations into the matter to trace the source of the malware and perhaps neutralize its effect on the unsuspecting public.
The National Security Ministry has since written to the Minister of Communications, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, to draw her ministry’s attention to the issue for necessary intervention.
The letter, sighted by The Anchor, dated November 15, 2023, said “Reports indicate that researchers from Kaspersky, a multinational cybersecurity company, have revealed the existence of WhatsApp and Telegram modifications for Android devices, that have embedded malware called CanesSpy, which is coded in Arabic and Azerbaijani.”
It explained, “That, these modified versions are designed to activate the spyware module when a phone is either switched on or starts charging, and subsequently establish contact with a server, to steal sensitive information such as the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI), phone number, mobile country code, mobile network code and details about the victims’ contacts and accounts, every five (5) minutes.”
The letter, captioned “Discovery of new malware embedded in WhatsApp and Telegraph modifications for android devices,” was signed by the National Security Minister, Albert Kan-Dapaah.
“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 users accounts,” the letter further stated.
The National Security Minister said, “The above development is forwarded for your attention and necessary intervention, given the number of users of the general public on both WhatsApp and Telegram platforms.”
It is however unclear, whether the deadly spy virus has started causing any harm to users of these android devices on social media platforms, like WhatsApp, in Ghana.
Source: Anchorghana.com
