Taliban Used Left-Behind UK Gear to Find Local Nationals Who Worked With Western Forces, Inquiry Is Told

A confidential source has disclosed a parliamentary probe that British authorities abandoned sensitive technology permitting Afghanistan's rulers to locate local individuals that had served with international military.

Information Leak Endangers Thousands in Danger

The whistleblower, known as Person A, explained that people concerned by the information breach were told to change residences and change their phone numbers to ensure their safety from militant forces.

Members of Parliament are investigating the UK government's handling of a serious disclosure of personal details concerning approximately 19k individuals who had requested to relocate to Britain to flee the Taliban.

The Information Breach Happened

A data file containing their personal data, such as names, contact details and sometimes family information, was accidentally leaked by a staff member stationed at UK special forces headquarters in early 2022.

The incident became known only in August 2023, when identities of multiple applicants who had requested to settle in Britain were posted on Facebook.

Regime's Resources

It appears there is a false assumption that the Taliban lack the same sort of facilities that allied forces use,” the whistleblower testified to MPs.

All equipment was abandoned in Afghanistan; they possess it. Once they acquire mobile details, they are able to track your precise location. That's precisely what specialized teams achieved.”

Under inquiry about regarding if authorities possessed advanced decryption, the whistleblower stated: “They have complete capability.”

Consequences of the Information Leak

Preliminary research provided to the investigation estimated that at least 49 relatives and co-workers of people concerned by the incident had been murdered.

A gag order concerning the breach was put in force in last year and prevented any information about it from being made public until recently.

Safety Measures

Given injunction limitations, Person A and the aid group she was working with advised individuals at risk they were supporting that they had “concerns that mobile communications had been breached”.

“We recommended that they moved if they could and changed their contact details. That constituted the two main details that, if authorities had access to this information, would lead to them being traced,” the source testified.

Challenged Assessments

The whistleblower argued that government assessment performed by a former official had been wrong to conclude that the possession of the records by the regime was “unlikely to substantially change present danger”.

“The thing to remember is that these Afghans are in hiding from the Taliban; they live secretly. The primary issue involves their previous employment.”

The source explained horrific violence suffered by at-risk Afghans, involving electric shock torture, waterboarding, and severe beatings.

“Instances include toddlers who have had their arms broken to force households to say where someone is,” she testified.