UK Offers Faster Resettlement for Afghan Linked to Leaked Data
In February 2022, personal data of 19,000 Afghan resettlement applicants was mistakenly leaked by UK Special Forces. An Afghan individual in the UK shared the data, leading to its posting on Facebook by an applicant in Afghanistan. Concerns were raised about the Taliban accessing the sensitive information. The breach prompted a secret £850m emergency resettlement scheme, bringing 4,500 Afghans to the UK. The scheme is now closing, but relocation offers to remaining Afghans will be honored.
The breach occurred in February 2022 when personal data of nearly 19,000 applicants to the UK's Afghan resettlement scheme was accidentally emailed outside the UK Special Forces headquarters. The data was shared with an Afghan individual in the UK who then passed it on to others, including people in Afghanistan. One person in Afghanistan posted some of the data on Facebook after their application was rejected.
In August 2023, an MoD case worker alerted a defence minister about the data being on Facebook, expressing concerns about the Taliban accessing it. The data came from the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (Arap) scheme established in 2021 during the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan. It was crucial as Afghan nationals who supported the British government during the conflict were at risk under Taliban rule.
The breach prompted the government to create a secret £850m emergency resettlement scheme to bring individuals in the database to the UK. The breach and subsequent scheme were kept confidential by a super-injunction until lifted by High Court judge Mr Justice Chamberlain in 2024.
The emergency scheme, named the Afghanistan Response Route, has brought around 4,500 Afghans to the UK, with more expected. The government recently announced the closure of the scheme but assured that relocation offers to those remaining in Afghanistan would be honored.
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