Afghan Rulers Employed Discarded British Technology to Track Down Local Nationals That Served With Allied Forces, Inquiry Hears

An informant has told a parliamentary probe that British authorities abandoned sensitive equipment allowing the Taliban to identify local individuals that had served with western forces.

Information Leak Puts Numerous at Risk

The whistleblower, identified as Person A, testified that people concerned by the security lapse were instructed to move homes and change their phone numbers to protect themselves from the Taliban.

Members of Parliament are investigating the UK government's handling of a catastrophic breach of private information involving approximately 19k Afghans who had requested to come to the UK to flee militant rule.

Data Disclosure Was Discovered

A data file including private information, such as names, addresses and in some cases household data, was accidentally leaked by an official employed at British military command in February 2022.

The incident came to light in late 2023, when details of nine people who had requested to move to Britain appeared on online platforms.

Militant Technology

“There seems to be this misconception that the Taliban do not have the same sort of facilities that western nations possess,” Person A informed the committee.

Technology was deserted in Afghanistan; they have it. Once they acquire mobile details, they are able to track your precise location. That is what specialized teams achieved.”

During testimony about if militant forces possessed advanced decryption, the source stated: “They have complete capability.”

Impact of the Security Lapse

Early investigations presented to the investigation estimated that approximately fifty family members and colleagues of individuals impacted by the leak had been killed.

A gag order regarding the leak was enacted in late 2023 and blocked all details about it from media reporting until mid-2025.

Safety Measures

Because she was restricted, Person A and the aid group she was working with informed Afghan families they were supporting that they had “suspicions that certain devices had been intercepted”.

“We recommended that they relocate when possible and switched their phone numbers. Those were the primary information that, should militant forces acquired this information, would lead to them being traced,” Person A explained.

Contested Findings

Person A argued that internal investigation conducted by an ex-government employee had been mistaken to conclude that the acquisition of the records by the regime was “unlikely to substantially change an individual's existing exposure”.

“The important fact is that affected people are in hiding from the Taliban; they remain concealed. All concerns relate to past work history.”

The source explained disturbing abuse endured by at-risk Afghans, involving electrocution, simulated drowning, and severe beatings.

“There are cases of four-year-old children who have had their arms broken to try to get households to reveal locations,” Person A stated.