The National Security Ministry has launched an investigation into the discovery of spy applications embedded in WhatsApp and Telegram on Android devices. 

In a confidential letter signed by National Security Minister Albert Kan-Dapaah, to the Minister for Communications and Digitalisation, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, it was revealed that Kaspersky, a multinational cybersecurity company, reported the existence of modified versions of WhatsApp and Telegram for Android. 

These versions, Kaspersky noted, contained malware named CanesSpy, coded in Arabic and Azerbaijani.

According to the letter, the modified Apps activate a spyware module when the phone is switched on or starts charging.  They then establish contact with a server to steal sensitive information, including the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI), phone number, mobile country code, mobile network code, and details about the victim's contacts and accounts, every five minutes.

The letter also highlighted that Meta, WhatsApp's parent company, has filed a lawsuit against three developers in China and Taiwan for distributing unofficial WhatsApp applications, such as HeyMods, compromising over one million user accounts.

The National Security Ministry has called for attention and necessary intervention in response to this security concern.