In February 2022, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) suffered a catastrophic data breach involving the leak of a database containing **33,000 records**, including details of over **18,000 Afghan applicants and their families** who had collaborated with British forces. The leaked data—dubbed a potential 'kill list'—exposed individuals at severe risk of Taliban reprisals, including murder. The breach originated from an unnamed British serviceman who **accidentally emailed the full dataset** (believing it contained only 150 names) to unsecured contacts. The MoD took **16 months to detect the leak**, only discovering it after the list surfaced in a Facebook group. The government responded with an **unprecedented global superinjunction**, suppressing media and parliamentary scrutiny for **18 months**, while delaying resettlement efforts for affected Afghans. The breach not only endangered lives but also triggered legal threats, reputational damage, and accusations of a **cover-up** to avoid political accountability. Investigations later revealed that the secrecy measures may have **increased the Taliban’s ability to exploit the data**, exacerbating risks to those exposed.
Source: https://www.aol.com/news/afghan-data-leak-superinjunction-left-122536392.html
TPRM report: https://www.rankiteo.com/company/uk-ministry-of-defence
"id": "uk-3110731110525",
"linkid": "uk-ministry-of-defence",
"type": "Breach",
"date": "2/2022",
"severity": "100",
"impact": "7",
"explanation": "Attack that could injure or kill people"{'affected_entities': [{'customers_affected': '33,000+ records (18,000+ Afghan '
'applicants and families)',
'industry': 'Defense/Military',
'location': 'United Kingdom',
'name': 'UK Ministry of Defence (MoD)',
'type': 'Government Agency'},
{'customers_affected': '100,000+ estimated at risk',
'location': 'Afghanistan/Global Diaspora',
'name': 'Afghan Nationals at Risk',
'type': 'Individuals/Families'}],
'attack_vector': 'Human Error (Misaddressed Email)',
'customer_advisories': 'None (Suppressed by superinjunction; limited outreach '
'to 150 resettled individuals)',
'data_breach': {'data_encryption': 'No (Unencrypted email attachment)',
'data_exfiltration': 'Yes (Shared via Facebook group; '
'potential Taliban access)',
'file_types_exposed': ['Spreadsheet/Database'],
'number_of_records_exposed': '33,000+',
'personally_identifiable_information': 'Yes',
'sensitivity_of_data': 'Extremely High (Life-threatening if '
'obtained by Taliban)',
'type_of_data_compromised': ['Full Names',
'Military Affiliation Details',
'Family Member Information',
'Contact Details']},
'date_detected': '2022-02',
'date_publicly_disclosed': '2024',
'description': 'A massive data leak by the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) '
'exposed the personal details of over 33,000 Afghans, '
'including 18,000 applicants and their families, who had ties '
'to UK forces and sought sanctuary in Britain. The leak, '
'discovered in February 2022 but originating from an August '
'2021 email error, was covered up by an unprecedented global '
'superinjunction that prevented media reporting and '
'parliamentary scrutiny for 18 months. The leaked data, '
"described as a potential 'kill list' for the Taliban, put "
"over 100,000 Afghans at risk of reprisals. The MoD's slow "
'response, use of legal gagging orders, and lack of '
'transparency were later criticized in a parliamentary inquiry '
'and independent investigation.',
'impact': {'brand_reputation_impact': 'Severe damage to UK government/MoD '
'trust, accusations of Orwellian '
'censorship and negligence',
'data_compromised': ['Personal Identifiable Information (PII)',
'Family Details',
'Military Affiliation Records'],
'identity_theft_risk': 'High (Taliban-targeted reprisals)',
'legal_liabilities': ['Potential lawsuits from affected Afghans',
'Violation of democratic accountability '
'principles'],
'operational_impact': 'Delayed resettlement of at-risk Afghans; '
'18-month suppression of '
'public/parliamentary scrutiny'},
'initial_access_broker': {'data_sold_on_dark_web': 'No (but shared on '
'Facebook; potential '
'Taliban access)',
'entry_point': 'Misaddressed email by unnamed '
'British serviceman (Whitehall '
'office)',
'high_value_targets': ['Afghan interpreters',
'Military collaborators',
'Families of UK-affiliated '
'personnel'],
'reconnaissance_period': '16 months (between leak '
'and detection)'},
'investigation_status': 'Completed (Independent investigation by Paul Rimmer; '
'ongoing parliamentary scrutiny)',
'lessons_learned': ['Overuse of legal suppression (superinjunctions) can '
'exacerbate risks by delaying transparency and '
'remediation.',
'Human error in data handling requires stricter '
'validation controls, especially for high-stakes '
'datasets.',
'Lack of parliamentary/media oversight undermines '
'democratic accountability in crisis response.',
'Delayed incident response (16 months) significantly '
'increases harm to affected individuals.'],
'post_incident_analysis': {'corrective_actions': ['MoD commissioned '
'independent investigation '
'(Paul Rimmer).',
'Partial lifting of '
'superinjunction under '
'legal/media pressure.',
'Ongoing parliamentary '
'review of transparency '
'protocols.'],
'root_causes': ['Human error (email misaddressing) '
'combined with lack of data '
'validation.',
'Inadequate incident detection '
'capabilities (16-month delay).',
'Overreliance on legal suppression '
'(superinjunction) instead of '
'proactive remediation.',
'Bureaucratic delays in '
'resettlement scheme '
'implementation.']},
'recommendations': ['Implement automated data segregation/validation for '
'sensitive emails.',
'Establish clear protocols for rapid disclosure of '
'life-threatening breaches, balancing transparency with '
'risk mitigation.',
'Avoid legal gagging orders that suppress '
'public/parliamentary scrutiny without compelling '
'justification.',
'Proactively engage with media/NGOs to manage high-risk '
'breaches involving vulnerable populations.'],
'references': [{'date_accessed': '2024',
'source': 'The Independent (Holly Bancroft)'},
{'date_accessed': '2024', 'source': 'The Times (Larisa Brown)'},
{'date_accessed': '2024',
'source': 'Daily Mail (Sam Greenhill)'},
{'date_accessed': '2024',
'source': 'House of Commons Defence Committee Hearing',
'url': 'https://parliamentlive.tv'},
{'source': 'Paul Rimmer Investigation Report (MoD)'}],
'regulatory_compliance': {'legal_actions': ['Potential lawsuits from affected '
'Afghans',
'Parliamentary inquiry by House '
'of Commons Defence Committee'],
'regulations_violated': ['UK Freedom of Information '
'Act (suppression of '
'public interest '
'disclosure)',
'Democratic Accountability '
'Principles']},
'response': {'communication_strategy': ['Narrative control via selective '
'disclosures',
'Suppression of media/parliamentary '
'debate'],
'containment_measures': ['Superinjunction to suppress reporting',
'Limited resettlement scheme for 150 '
'individuals'],
'incident_response_plan_activated': 'Yes (Delayed; 16 months '
'after leak)',
'recovery_measures': ['Independent investigation by Paul Rimmer '
'(former MoD intelligence deputy)',
'Partial lifting of superinjunction under '
'legal pressure'],
'third_party_assistance': ['MI6', 'CIA', 'Foreign Office']},
'stakeholder_advisories': ['Afghan resettlement NGOs warned of heightened '
'risks to clients.',
'UK Parliament (House of Commons Defence '
'Committee) briefed post-superinjunction.'],
'title': 'UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) Afghan Data Leak and Superinjunction '
'Cover-Up',
'type': ['Data Breach',
'Unauthorized Disclosure',
'Cover-Up',
'Legal Suppression'],
'vulnerability_exploited': 'Lack of Data Validation/Segregation in Email '
'Systems'}