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A whistleblower has revealed an official investigation that British authorities failed to secure confidential technology enabling the Taliban to track down Afghans that had served with western forces.

Data Breach Endangers Numerous at Risk

Person A, called Person A, testified that people concerned by the data leak were advised to move homes and switch their contact details to protect themselves from the Taliban.

Members of Parliament are currently examining the UK government's handling of a serious breach of private information concerning approximately 19k Afghans who had asked to relocate to Britain to flee the regime.

The Information Breach Occurred

An electronic document containing private information, including identities, contact details and sometimes relative details, was accidentally leaked by a worker working at British military command in February 2022.

The incident became known only in August 2023, when the names of several individuals who had requested to relocate to the UK appeared on social media.

Taliban Capabilities

“There seems to be this misconception that militant forces do not have the same sort of facilities that western nations possess,” she told lawmakers.

“We left it all behind in Afghanistan; they have it. Should they obtain a contact number, they are able to track your exact position. That is what the unit achieved.”

During testimony about whether the Taliban possessed sophisticated technology, the whistleblower declared: “They've got everything.”

Aftermath of the Data Breach

Preliminary research presented to the inquiry indicated that no fewer than forty-nine family members and colleagues of Afghans affected by the breach had been murdered.

A legal restriction about the leak was implemented in August 2023 and prevented any information regarding the matter from being made public until mid-2025.

Safety Measures

Given injunction limitations, Person A and the aid group she was working with advised Afghan families they were assisting that they had “concerns that somebody's phone had been intercepted”.

“We recommended that they relocate when possible and switched their mobile numbers. These represented the two main details that, should militant forces acquired these details, would cause their location being found,” the source testified.

Challenged Assessments

The whistleblower argued that an official review carried out by a retired civil servant had been wrong to state that the possession of the dataset by the regime was “minimally impact an individual's existing exposure”.

“The crucial point is that these individuals are in hiding from the authorities; they are in hiding. All concerns relate to their previous employment.”

Person A described horrific violence endured by affected individuals, involving electrocution, interrogation techniques, and physical abuse.

“We have had toddlers who have had bones crushed to pressure relatives to disclose hiding places,” she testified.