Afghan Rulers Used Discarded British Gear to Locate Afghans Who Worked With Western Forces, Inquiry Hears

A confidential source has told a parliamentary probe that the UK left behind sensitive devices permitting the militant group to identify local individuals who collaborated with western forces.

Data Breach Endangers Numerous at Risk

Person A, called Person A, stated that individuals impacted by the security lapse were advised to change residences and switch their phone numbers to ensure their safety from the Taliban.

MPs are currently examining official management of a serious breach of personal details involving almost nineteen thousand Afghans who had applied to come to the United Kingdom to avoid the Taliban.

Data Disclosure Was Discovered

A data file with private information, comprising names, phone numbers and in some cases family information, was inadvertently disclosed by a staff member stationed at special operations center in February 2022.

The breach was discovered only in August 2023, when the names of multiple applicants who had applied to move to the UK surfaced on Facebook.

Taliban Capabilities

“There seems to be a misunderstanding that Afghan rulers lack comparable resources that western nations possess,” Person A informed MPs.

All equipment was abandoned in Afghanistan; they have it. If they have a contact number, they are able to track your exact position. That's precisely what the unit accomplished.”

Under inquiry about regarding if authorities possessed sophisticated technology, the whistleblower confirmed: “They've got everything.”

Aftermath of the Data Breach

Early investigations submitted to the investigation estimated that no fewer than forty-nine family members and co-workers of people concerned by the breach had been murdered.

A gag order concerning the breach was implemented in last year and restricted any information regarding the matter from public disclosure until mid-2025.

Security Recommendations

Because she was restricted, Person A and the non-governmental organization she collaborated with told individuals at risk they were working with that they had “suspicions that mobile communications had been compromised”.

“We recommended that they change residence where feasible and switched their contact details. Those were the crucial data that, should militant forces acquired these details, would lead to their location being found,” she said.

Disputed Conclusions

The whistleblower disputed that an official review performed by a former official had been mistaken to state that the obtaining of the records by militant forces was “not significantly alter an individual's existing exposure”.

“The crucial point is that affected people are not standing up to the authorities; they are in hiding. The primary issue involves past work history.”

The source explained horrific treatment experienced by at-risk Afghans, involving electric shock torture, waterboarding, and violent assaults.

“Instances include toddlers who have had limbs fractured to pressure the family to disclose hiding places,” she testified.