🔗 Share this article

A whistleblower has told a parliamentary probe that the UK abandoned confidential equipment allowing Afghanistan's rulers to identify Afghans who worked with international military.

Data Breach Puts Numerous at Risk

The source, known as Person A, explained that Afghans affected by the security lapse were instructed to move homes and change their mobile numbers to protect themselves from the ruling authorities.

Lawmakers are currently examining official handling of a massive breach of confidential data involving nearly 19,000 Afghans who had asked to relocate to the United Kingdom to escape the Taliban.

Data Disclosure Was Discovered

A data file with their personal data, including names, addresses and in some cases family information, was accidentally leaked by a staff member working at UK special forces headquarters in last year.

The breach became known months later, when identities of multiple applicants who had requested to move to Britain were posted on Facebook.

Taliban Capabilities

Many believe there's this misconception that Afghan rulers do not have comparable resources that we have,” the whistleblower testified to the committee.

Technology was deserted in Afghanistan; it's in their hands. Once they acquire a contact number, they can locate your precise location. This is exactly how the unit did.”

Under inquiry about whether the Taliban possessed advanced decryption, Person A declared: “They possess all resources.”

Consequences of the Security Lapse

Early investigations presented to the committee suggested that approximately fifty kin and co-workers of individuals impacted by the incident had been killed.

A superinjunction concerning the incident was put in force in last year and blocked any information about it from media reporting until recently.

Security Recommendations

Because she was restricted, the source and the non-governmental organization she collaborated with told individuals at risk they were assisting that they had “suspicions that certain devices had been breached”.

“Our suggestion was that they change residence when possible and switched their phone numbers. These represented the primary information that, should militant forces obtained this information, would lead to their location being found,” she said.

Challenged Assessments

Person A disputed that internal investigation conducted by a retired civil servant had been mistaken to determine that the acquisition of the records by the regime was “unlikely to substantially change an individual's existing exposure”.

“The thing to remember is that these Afghans are in hiding from the Taliban; they are in hiding. All concerns relate to former occupations.”

Person A described horrific abuse experienced by at-risk Afghans, including electric shock torture, simulated drowning, and violent assaults.

“Instances include four-year-old children who have had limbs fractured to try to get households to disclose hiding places,” she testified.