🔗 Share this article

A whistleblower has told the Afghan leak inquiry that the UK failed to secure confidential equipment allowing Afghanistan's rulers to track down local individuals that had served with allied troops.

Information Leak Endangers Thousands in Danger

The source, called Person A, stated that people concerned by the data leak were advised to relocate and alter their contact details to avoid detection from the Taliban.

MPs are looking into official management of a catastrophic breach of confidential data affecting almost nineteen thousand individuals who had applied to move to the United Kingdom to avoid the Taliban.

The Information Breach Was Discovered

A spreadsheet with confidential details, comprising names, addresses and sometimes household data, was mistakenly released by an official stationed at British military command in early 2022.

The leak was discovered months later, when identities of nine people who had applied to move to the UK appeared on online platforms.

Regime's Resources

Many believe there's a misunderstanding that militant forces lack similar capabilities that western nations possess,” she told the committee.

“We left it all behind in Afghanistan; they have it. Once they acquire a contact number, they can locate you down to within metres. That's precisely what the unit did.”

During testimony about whether the Taliban owned sophisticated technology, the source stated: “They have complete capability.”

Impact of the Data Breach

Early investigations submitted to the committee indicated that no fewer than forty-nine family members and associates of people concerned by the breach had been executed.

A legal restriction regarding the incident was enacted in late 2023 and restricted all details concerning it from public disclosure until mid-2025.

Protective Actions

Due to legal constraints, the source and the non-governmental organization associated with advised individuals at risk they were working with that they had “concerns that mobile communications had been intercepted”.

“We recommended that they change residence where feasible and altered their contact details. These represented the crucial data that, should militant forces obtained these details, would lead to identification and capture,” the source testified.

Contested Findings

The source argued that internal investigation performed by a former official had been wrong to determine that the possession of the information by militant forces was “minimally impact current risk levels”.

“The important fact is that these Afghans are not standing up to militant forces; they remain concealed. All concerns relate to past work history.”

She detailed disturbing violence endured by at-risk Afghans, involving electric shock torture, simulated drowning, and violent assaults.

“There are cases of young kids who have had bones crushed to try to get the family to say where someone is,” she testified.