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A confidential source has told an official investigation that the UK failed to secure classified technology allowing the Taliban to track down Afghans who collaborated with allied troops.

Information Leak Endangers Numerous at Risk

The source, identified as Person A, testified that individuals impacted by the information breach were instructed to relocate and change their phone numbers to protect themselves from the Taliban.

Members of Parliament are looking into official handling of a massive leak of confidential data concerning approximately 19k individuals who had requested to come to the United Kingdom to escape the regime.

Data Disclosure Was Discovered

A spreadsheet with their personal data, such as identities, contact details and occasionally household data, was accidentally leaked by an official working at UK special forces headquarters in last year.

The breach came to light in late 2023, when the names of multiple applicants who had requested to settle in Britain were posted on Facebook.

Militant Technology

“There seems to be this misconception that the Taliban do not have the same sort of facilities that western nations possess,” the whistleblower testified to MPs.

“We left it all behind in Afghanistan; it's in their hands. Once they acquire your phone number, they can trace you down to within metres. This is exactly how intelligence groups achieved.”

Under inquiry about if militant forces owned necessary encryption, Person A declared: “They have complete capability.”

Consequences of the Data Breach

Initial findings provided to the investigation estimated that no fewer than forty-nine kin and colleagues of individuals impacted by the incident had been murdered.

A gag order about the leak was implemented in August 2023 and blocked relevant facts regarding the matter from public disclosure until recently.

Safety Measures

Because she was restricted, the whistleblower and the aid group she collaborated with informed individuals at risk they were supporting that they had “suspicions that certain devices had been intercepted”.

“We advised that they moved if they could and changed their contact details. These represented the primary information that, if authorities had access to these details, would lead to them being traced,” the source testified.

Contested Findings

The source disputed that government assessment performed by a former official had been incorrect to conclude that the possession of the records by militant forces was “minimally impact current risk levels”.

“The thing to remember is that these individuals are in hiding from militant forces; they remain concealed. Everything boils down to their previous employment.”

Person A described horrific abuse suffered by affected individuals, comprising electrocution, interrogation techniques, and severe beatings.

“We have had young kids who have had bones crushed to pressure relatives to disclose hiding places,” the whistleblower revealed.