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A confidential source has disclosed a parliamentary probe that British authorities left behind sensitive devices allowing the Taliban to identify Afghans who collaborated with western forces.

Information Leak Puts Thousands in Danger

Person A, known as Person A, stated that Afghans affected by the data leak were told to move homes and switch their phone numbers to avoid detection from the ruling authorities.

Lawmakers are looking into official handling of a massive breach of confidential data involving approximately 19k individuals who had requested to relocate to the United Kingdom to flee militant rule.

The Information Breach Occurred

A spreadsheet containing their personal data, such as identities, phone numbers and occasionally relative details, was mistakenly released by a staff member employed at British military command in early 2022.

The leak became known only in August 2023, when details of nine people who had sought to relocate to the UK were posted on social media.

Taliban Capabilities

It appears there is a misunderstanding that militant forces do not have comparable resources that we have,” the whistleblower testified to lawmakers.

“We left it all behind in Afghanistan; they have it. Once they acquire mobile details, they can trace your precise location. This is exactly how the unit accomplished.”

Under inquiry about whether the Taliban possessed sophisticated technology, Person A stated: “They have complete capability.”

Aftermath of the Data Breach

Preliminary research presented to the inquiry indicated that no fewer than forty-nine kin and associates of people concerned by the leak had been murdered.

A gag order about the leak was put in force in August 2023 and restricted all details concerning it from media reporting until mid-2025.

Protective Actions

Given injunction limitations, the source and the non-governmental organization associated with told Afghan families they were working with that they had “apprehensions that somebody's phone had been intercepted”.

“We recommended that they relocate where feasible and altered their mobile numbers. That constituted the primary information that, should militant forces had access to such data, would cause identification and capture,” Person A explained.

Challenged Assessments

The source disputed that an official review conducted by a former official had been mistaken to conclude that the obtaining of the records by militant forces was “not significantly alter present danger”.

“The thing to remember is that these individuals are in hiding from the Taliban; they remain concealed. The primary issue involves their previous employment.”

The source explained horrific treatment suffered by at-risk Afghans, including electric shock torture, waterboarding, and severe beatings.

“We have had young kids who have had bones crushed to force relatives to say where someone is,” the whistleblower revealed.