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A whistleblower has disclosed an official investigation that the UK failed to secure sensitive technology enabling the militant group to identify Afghans that had served with international military.

Data Breach Puts Numerous at Risk

The source, called Person A, testified that people concerned by the data leak were instructed to relocate and switch their mobile numbers to protect themselves from militant forces.

MPs are currently examining the Conservative government's management of a catastrophic disclosure of private information involving nearly 19,000 Afghans who had requested to relocate to the UK to avoid the regime.

Data Disclosure Occurred

An electronic document including private information, such as identities, addresses and sometimes household data, was inadvertently disclosed by a staff member stationed at special operations center in early 2022.

The leak came to light months later, when identities of several individuals who had sought to settle in the UK appeared on social media.

Regime's Resources

“There seems to be a misunderstanding that the Taliban are without similar capabilities that we have,” the whistleblower testified to the committee.

Technology was deserted in Afghanistan; they have it. Once they acquire a contact number, they are able to track your precise location. That is what intelligence groups accomplished.”

When questioned about if militant forces had access to sophisticated technology, the whistleblower declared: “They have complete capability.”

Consequences of the Information Leak

Initial findings presented to the inquiry estimated that at least 49 kin and co-workers of individuals impacted by the leak had been executed.

A legal restriction about the breach was put in force in August 2023 and prevented all details about it from media reporting until July 2025.

Safety Measures

Due to legal constraints, Person A and the volunteer organization associated with told affected households they were working with that they had “suspicions that somebody's phone had been intercepted”.

“We recommended that they relocate when possible and altered their phone numbers. That constituted the primary information that, if authorities acquired this information, would result in them being traced,” the source testified.

Disputed Conclusions

Person A contested that an official review carried out by a former official had been mistaken to determine that the obtaining of the records by militant forces was “not significantly alter current risk levels”.

“The crucial point is that these Afghans are not standing up to the Taliban; they live secretly. Everything boils down to their previous employment.”

The source explained terrible violence suffered by at-risk Afghans, involving electric shock torture, interrogation techniques, and severe beatings.

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