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An informant has revealed a parliamentary probe that the UK left behind classified equipment permitting Afghanistan's rulers to identify local individuals who collaborated with international military.

Information Leak Puts Thousands at Risk

The whistleblower, known as Person A, explained that individuals impacted by the security lapse were instructed to change residences and switch their mobile numbers to ensure their safety from the ruling authorities.

MPs are currently examining the Conservative government's management of a serious disclosure of personal details affecting almost nineteen thousand Afghans who had asked to come to the UK to avoid the Taliban.

The Information Breach Happened

A spreadsheet including their personal data, such as identities, addresses and in some cases household data, was mistakenly released by an official working at special operations center in February 2022.

The incident came to light months later, when identities of multiple applicants who had applied to settle in the UK surfaced on online platforms.

Regime's Resources

Many believe there's this misconception that the Taliban are without comparable resources that allied forces use,” she told lawmakers.

All equipment was abandoned in Afghanistan; it's in their hands. If they have your phone number, they can locate your exact position. That is what specialized teams did.”

During testimony about if militant forces possessed advanced decryption, Person A confirmed: “They've got everything.”

Consequences of the Information Leak

Preliminary research provided to the committee indicated that at least 49 relatives and colleagues of individuals impacted by the leak had been executed.

A legal restriction about the breach was implemented in August 2023 and prevented any information about it from media reporting until July 2025.

Protective Actions

Because she was restricted, the source and the non-governmental organization associated with informed Afghan families they were working with that they had “apprehensions that mobile communications had been intercepted”.

“We advised that they moved if they could and switched their mobile numbers. These represented the primary information that, if authorities had access to these details, would cause identification and capture,” she said.

Disputed Conclusions

Person A argued that internal investigation conducted by an ex-government employee had been incorrect to determine that the obtaining of the records by militant forces was “unlikely to substantially change an individual's existing exposure”.

“The thing to remember is that these Afghans are not confronting the authorities; they live secretly. All concerns relate to past work history.”

Person A described terrible abuse suffered by concerned people, comprising electric shock torture, simulated drowning, and violent assaults.

“There are cases of young kids who have had their arms broken to pressure relatives to reveal locations,” she testified.