Afghan Rulers Used Discarded UK Technology to Track Down Afghans Who Worked With Allied Troops, Inquiry Is Told

A whistleblower has told the Afghan leak inquiry that British authorities abandoned sensitive equipment enabling the militant group to track down local individuals who collaborated with allied troops.

Data Breach Endangers Numerous at Risk

Person A, identified as Person A, stated that people concerned by the data leak were instructed to change residences and alter their phone numbers to ensure their safety from the ruling authorities.

Lawmakers are looking into the Conservative government's handling of a catastrophic leak of personal details affecting almost nineteen thousand Afghans who had requested to come to the UK to avoid militant rule.

The Information Breach Was Discovered

An electronic document with private information, such as identities, addresses and in some cases relative details, was mistakenly released by a worker stationed at British military command in February 2022.

The incident came to light in late 2023, when details of several individuals who had applied to relocate to Britain appeared on social media.

Taliban Capabilities

“There seems to be this misconception that the Taliban do not have the same sort of facilities that allied forces use,” Person A informed lawmakers.

All equipment was abandoned in Afghanistan; they possess it. Should they obtain mobile details, they can trace your precise location. This is exactly how intelligence groups achieved.”

Under inquiry about if militant forces had access to sophisticated technology, the whistleblower stated: “They've got everything.”

Consequences of the Information Leak

Early investigations submitted to the inquiry indicated that at least 49 kin and associates of people concerned by the leak had been killed.

A gag order regarding the leak was implemented in late 2023 and blocked relevant facts regarding the matter from public disclosure until July 2025.

Protective Actions

Given injunction limitations, the whistleblower and the aid group associated with informed Afghan families they were assisting that they had “concerns that mobile communications had been breached”.

“Our suggestion was that they change residence when possible and switched their mobile numbers. These represented the crucial data that, if the Taliban acquired such data, would lead to them being traced,” Person A explained.

Disputed Conclusions

The whistleblower argued that internal investigation conducted by a former official had been incorrect to conclude that the obtaining of the records by the Taliban was “unlikely to substantially change current risk levels”.

“The crucial point is that affected people are not standing up to the authorities; they live secretly. All concerns relate to their previous employment.”

The source explained terrible treatment suffered by concerned people, including electric shock torture, waterboarding, and violent assaults.

“Instances include four-year-old children who have had their arms broken to try to get the family to reveal locations,” she testified.