Whose information was compromised and what were the circumstances?
A document containing the personal details of approximately 18,700 Afghans and their family members – totaling around 33,000 individuals – was inadvertently sent to incorrect recipients via email in February 2022, Healey informed legislators in the House of Commons.
These individuals had submitted applications for resettlement to the UK between August 2021 and January 7, 2022. This timeframe encompassed the six months following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan after the withdrawal of US and allied forces from the nation. The majority were employed as translators, aides, or in various roles for the British military in Afghanistan.
They had applied for the UK’s Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) initiative, which, like its predecessor, the Ex-Gratia Scheme (EGS), was established for Afghans who had collaborated with the British armed forces.
The EGS was initially created in 2013 after a prolonged effort by activists and the media advocating for individuals who had assisted the British military in Afghanistan and who were deemed likely to experience reprisals from the Taliban.
