🔗 Share this article

An informant has disclosed the Afghan leak inquiry that the UK abandoned confidential equipment enabling the Taliban to locate Afghans that had served with western forces.

Information Leak Puts Thousands in Danger

The whistleblower, identified as Person A, stated that individuals impacted by the information breach were told to change residences and switch their phone numbers to ensure their safety from militant forces.

Members of Parliament are looking into the Conservative government's handling of a serious disclosure of personal details involving approximately 19k individuals who had applied to move to Britain to escape the regime.

The Information Breach Happened

A spreadsheet including confidential details, comprising identities, contact details and in some cases household data, was inadvertently disclosed by a staff member employed at UK special forces headquarters in February 2022.

The leak became known in late 2023, when identities of several individuals who had sought to settle in the UK were posted on social media.

Taliban Capabilities

“There seems to be a false assumption that militant forces are without similar capabilities that allied forces use,” the whistleblower testified to MPs.

“We left it all behind in Afghanistan; they possess it. Once they acquire mobile details, they are able to track your exact position. This is exactly how intelligence groups did.”

Under inquiry about regarding if authorities possessed sophisticated technology, the source declared: “They possess all resources.”

Aftermath of the Security Lapse

Initial findings presented to the investigation indicated that at least 49 kin and colleagues of people concerned by the incident had been killed.

A legal restriction regarding the incident was implemented in late 2023 and prevented relevant facts about it from being made public until July 2025.

Security Recommendations

Given injunction limitations, the whistleblower and the aid group associated with told affected households they were assisting that they had “apprehensions that somebody's phone had been compromised”.

“We advised that they moved when possible and altered their contact details. These represented the crucial data that, if the Taliban obtained such data, would result in their location being found,” Person A explained.

Disputed Conclusions

The whistleblower disputed that government assessment carried out by an ex-government employee had been wrong to determine that the possession of the information by militant forces was “minimally impact current risk levels”.

“The thing to remember is that these individuals are not standing up to militant forces; they live secretly. Everything boils down to their previous employment.”

The source explained disturbing violence endured by concerned people, including electric shock torture, simulated drowning, and physical abuse.

“There are cases of four-year-old children who have had bones crushed to pressure relatives to reveal locations,” she testified.