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An informant has told a parliamentary probe that British authorities left behind sensitive equipment permitting the militant group to identify Afghans that had served with allied troops.

Data Breach Puts Numerous in Danger

The source, known as Person A, testified that individuals impacted by the information breach were told to relocate and alter their phone numbers to ensure their safety from militant forces.

MPs are investigating the UK government's management of a serious breach of private information involving nearly 19,000 Afghans who had applied to move to the UK to avoid the Taliban.

How the Leak Occurred

A spreadsheet including their personal data, such as names, contact details and in some cases relative details, was accidentally leaked by a worker working at special operations center in early 2022.

The leak came to light in late 2023, when details of multiple applicants who had sought to move to the UK surfaced on online platforms.

Taliban Capabilities

“There seems to be a false assumption that the Taliban lack the same sort of facilities that western nations possess,” Person A informed lawmakers.

All equipment was abandoned in Afghanistan; it's in their hands. If they have your phone number, they are able to track you down to within metres. That's precisely what specialized teams did.”

Under inquiry about if militant forces had access to necessary encryption, the whistleblower confirmed: “They have complete capability.”

Consequences of the Data Breach

Early investigations presented to the committee suggested that approximately fifty relatives and colleagues of people concerned by the breach had been murdered.

A superinjunction regarding the breach was enacted in late 2023 and restricted all details about it from media reporting until July 2025.

Security Recommendations

Given injunction limitations, the whistleblower and the volunteer organization she collaborated with informed individuals at risk they were working with that they had “suspicions that certain devices had been compromised”.

“We recommended that they change residence when possible and switched their phone numbers. These represented the two main details that, should militant forces acquired this information, would result in their location being found,” the source testified.

Disputed Conclusions

The whistleblower argued that an official review carried out by an ex-government employee had been wrong to state that the acquisition of the records by militant forces was “minimally impact an individual's existing exposure”.

“The important fact is that affected people are in hiding from the authorities; they live secretly. Everything boils down to former occupations.”

She detailed horrific violence experienced by concerned people, involving electrocution, simulated drowning, and physical abuse.

“We have had toddlers who have had bones crushed to pressure households to reveal locations,” Person A stated.