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A confidential source has told an official investigation that the UK left behind classified equipment enabling Afghanistan's rulers to track down local individuals who worked with allied troops.

Information Leak Endangers Thousands at Risk

The source, identified as Person A, stated that individuals impacted by the security lapse were instructed to move homes and alter their phone numbers to ensure their safety from the Taliban.

Lawmakers are investigating the Conservative government's handling of a catastrophic leak of confidential data concerning nearly 19,000 individuals who had requested to move to the United Kingdom to avoid militant rule.

The Information Breach Happened

A spreadsheet containing confidential details, including names, phone numbers and sometimes household data, was accidentally leaked by a staff member working at special operations center in last year.

The breach came to light months later, when the names of multiple applicants who had sought to settle in the UK appeared on social media.

Regime's Resources

It appears there is a misunderstanding that the Taliban lack similar capabilities that we have,” the whistleblower testified to MPs.

All equipment was abandoned in Afghanistan; it's in their hands. Should they obtain mobile details, they are able to track you down to within metres. That's precisely what intelligence groups achieved.”

Under inquiry about if militant forces had access to sophisticated technology, the whistleblower declared: “They have complete capability.”

Aftermath of the Data Breach

Initial findings provided to the investigation indicated that no fewer than forty-nine family members and colleagues of Afghans affected by the leak had been murdered.

A gag order about the breach was put in force in last year and prevented relevant facts concerning it from being made public until July 2025.

Safety Measures

Given injunction limitations, the source and the volunteer organization she was working with told Afghan families they were working with that they had “apprehensions that somebody's phone had been breached”.

“We advised that they relocate when possible and switched their contact details. These represented the two main details that, should militant forces acquired these details, would lead to them being traced,” the source testified.

Challenged Assessments

The whistleblower contested that internal investigation carried out by a former official had been wrong to determine that the obtaining of the information by the Taliban was “not significantly alter an individual's existing exposure”.

“The crucial point is that these individuals are not confronting the Taliban; they are in hiding. The primary issue involves past work history.”

The source explained horrific violence endured by concerned people, including electrocution, waterboarding, and physical abuse.

“There are cases of toddlers who have had their arms broken to pressure households to say where someone is,” the whistleblower revealed.