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An informant has revealed the Afghan leak inquiry that the UK left behind confidential technology allowing the militant group to locate local individuals that had served with allied troops.

Data Breach Puts Numerous in Danger

The source, known as Person A, explained that individuals impacted by the information breach were instructed to relocate and change their phone numbers to protect themselves from the Taliban.

MPs are looking into the Conservative government's management of a serious leak of personal details concerning nearly 19,000 Afghans who had asked to relocate to Britain to escape militant rule.

Data Disclosure Happened

An electronic document containing private information, such as identities, contact details and occasionally relative details, was accidentally leaked by an official stationed at British military command in early 2022.

The incident was discovered months later, when identities of multiple applicants who had applied to relocate to 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,” she told the committee.

“We left it all behind in Afghanistan; they possess it. Once they acquire a contact number, they can locate you down to within metres. This is exactly how specialized teams achieved.”

Under inquiry about whether the Taliban had access to necessary encryption, the source confirmed: “They possess all resources.”

Impact of the Data Breach

Initial findings submitted to the inquiry estimated that approximately fifty family members and colleagues of individuals impacted by the breach had been executed.

A superinjunction concerning the incident was put in force in August 2023 and prevented relevant facts about it from public disclosure until mid-2025.

Security Recommendations

Due to legal constraints, Person A and the volunteer organization she was working with told affected households they were working with that they had “suspicions that certain devices had been intercepted”.

“Our suggestion was that they moved when possible and switched their contact details. These represented the two main details that, should militant forces acquired these details, would result in them being traced,” the source testified.

Challenged Assessments

The whistleblower disputed that internal investigation performed by a retired civil servant had been incorrect to determine that the possession of the dataset by the Taliban was “not significantly alter present danger”.

“The important fact is that affected people are not standing up to the Taliban; they remain concealed. The primary issue involves their previous employment.”

She detailed horrific abuse suffered by at-risk Afghans, including electrocution, waterboarding, and physical abuse.

“Instances include four-year-old children who have had bones crushed to pressure relatives to reveal locations,” she testified.