Afghan Rulers Used Discarded UK Gear to Track Down Afghans That Served With Allied Troops, Investigation Is Told

An informant has disclosed an official investigation that the UK abandoned confidential technology enabling the Taliban to track down local individuals who collaborated with international military.

Information Leak Endangers Thousands at Risk

The whistleblower, known as Person A, explained that individuals impacted by the data leak were instructed to relocate and change their contact details to ensure their safety from the Taliban.

Lawmakers are investigating official handling of a catastrophic leak of private information involving nearly 19,000 individuals who had requested to move to the UK to avoid the Taliban.

How the Leak Occurred

A spreadsheet with their personal data, comprising names, addresses and sometimes relative details, was mistakenly released by a staff member employed at special operations center in last year.

The leak was discovered months later, when the names of nine people who had sought to settle in the UK surfaced on online platforms.

Taliban Capabilities

Many believe there's a misunderstanding that militant forces lack comparable resources that we have,” she told lawmakers.

“We left it all behind in Afghanistan; they possess it. Once they acquire mobile details, they can trace your precise location. That is what intelligence groups accomplished.”

Under inquiry about if militant forces possessed sophisticated technology, Person A stated: “They've got everything.”

Impact of the Information Leak

Preliminary research presented to the committee indicated that no fewer than forty-nine family members and colleagues of Afghans affected by the incident had been murdered.

A legal restriction regarding the breach was implemented in late 2023 and restricted any information concerning it from media reporting until July 2025.

Security Recommendations

Because she was restricted, Person A and the volunteer organization she collaborated with informed Afghan families they were supporting that they had “suspicions that certain devices had been compromised”.

“Our suggestion was that they change residence when possible and switched their mobile numbers. Those were the primary information that, if authorities had access to this information, would cause them being traced,” the source testified.

Contested Findings

The whistleblower contested that internal investigation conducted by a former official had been wrong to conclude that the possession of the dataset by the regime was “not significantly alter present danger”.

“The crucial point is that these Afghans are in hiding from militant forces; they remain concealed. All concerns relate to their previous employment.”

Person A described horrific violence endured by affected individuals, involving electric shock torture, waterboarding, and severe beatings.

“There are cases of young kids who have had limbs fractured to try to get relatives to disclose hiding places,” she testified.