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An informant has revealed the Afghan leak inquiry that British authorities left behind classified technology enabling the militant group to locate local individuals who collaborated with allied troops.

Information Leak Puts Thousands in Danger

The source, known as Person A, explained that people concerned by the data leak were told to change residences and change their contact details to ensure their safety from the ruling authorities.

Members of Parliament are looking into the Conservative government's management of a serious breach of personal details affecting approximately 19k individuals who had applied to come to Britain to escape militant rule.

The Information Breach Happened

A data file including confidential details, such as names, contact details and sometimes household data, was accidentally leaked by a staff member working at special operations center in February 2022.

The breach came to light in late 2023, when details of nine people who had sought to settle in Britain surfaced on social media.

Taliban Capabilities

“There seems to be a misunderstanding that the Taliban are without similar capabilities that allied forces use,” the whistleblower testified to MPs.

All equipment was abandoned in Afghanistan; they have it. Should they obtain mobile details, they are able to track your precise location. This is exactly how the unit did.”

When questioned about regarding if authorities possessed necessary encryption, the whistleblower confirmed: “They've got everything.”

Impact of the Data Breach

Initial findings submitted to the inquiry indicated that no fewer than forty-nine kin and colleagues of people concerned by the leak had been executed.

A legal restriction about the breach was enacted in late 2023 and blocked relevant facts regarding the matter from media reporting until July 2025.

Safety Measures

Due to legal constraints, Person A and the aid group she was working with informed Afghan families they were assisting that they had “suspicions that somebody's phone had been compromised”.

“We recommended that they change residence when possible and switched their phone numbers. Those were the two main details that, should militant forces had access to these details, would cause identification and capture,” she said.

Contested Findings

Person A argued that government assessment performed by a retired civil servant had been mistaken to conclude that the obtaining of the information by militant forces was “not significantly alter current risk levels”.

“The crucial point is that affected people are in hiding from the Taliban; they live secretly. All concerns relate to former occupations.”

Person A described terrible treatment endured by affected individuals, including electric shock torture, simulated drowning, and violent assaults.

“We have had young kids who have had their arms broken to pressure the family to say where someone is,” Person A stated.