🔗 Share this article

A whistleblower has told an official investigation that the UK left behind classified technology allowing the Taliban to track down Afghans that had served with allied troops.

Data Breach Endangers Thousands in Danger

The whistleblower, identified as Person A, testified that Afghans affected by the information breach were advised to move homes and switch their phone numbers to avoid detection from the Taliban.

Members of Parliament are investigating official response of a catastrophic breach of private information concerning approximately 19k Afghans who had requested to relocate to the United Kingdom to escape the Taliban.

How the Leak Was Discovered

A data file containing their personal data, such as names, phone numbers and in some cases relative details, was inadvertently disclosed by a staff member stationed at UK special forces headquarters in February 2022.

The leak became known only in August 2023, when the names of several individuals who had sought to move to the UK appeared on online platforms.

Regime's Resources

“There seems to be a misunderstanding that the Taliban are without similar capabilities that allied forces use,” the whistleblower testified to lawmakers.

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

During testimony about whether the Taliban owned advanced decryption, Person A declared: “They have complete capability.”

Impact of the Data Breach

Early investigations presented to the committee suggested that at least 49 family members and co-workers of Afghans affected by the breach had been executed.

A superinjunction concerning the incident was enacted in late 2023 and prevented all details concerning it from media reporting until mid-2025.

Security Recommendations

Given injunction limitations, the source and the volunteer organization associated with advised Afghan families they were working with that they had “concerns that mobile communications had been breached”.

“We advised that they change residence if they could and switched their mobile numbers. These represented the crucial data that, if the Taliban had access to this information, would result in them being traced,” she said.

Challenged Assessments

The whistleblower argued that internal investigation carried out by a retired civil servant had been incorrect to determine that the acquisition of the information by the regime was “not significantly alter current risk levels”.

“The thing to remember is that affected people are not confronting militant forces; they remain concealed. The primary issue involves their previous employment.”

Person A described terrible violence suffered by at-risk Afghans, comprising electric shock torture, simulated drowning, and severe beatings.

“Instances include toddlers who have had bones crushed to try to get households to disclose hiding places,” Person A stated.