UK Parliamentary Inquiry Finds MoD Afghan Data Breach Was Foreseeable Systemic Failure
A UK parliamentary inquiry by the Commons Defence Committee has found that a 2023 data breach exposing personal details of over 18,500 Afghan applicants to the UK's relocation scheme was a 'foreseeable systemic failure' by the Ministry of Defence (MoD). The breach, caused by an MoD employee sharing an Excel spreadsheet with a third party, originated from UK Special Forces headquarters. The report criticized the MoD for lacking expertise, using secrecy as a 'shield' against accountability, and relying on inappropriate tools and weak procedures. An unprecedented super-injunction prevented media reporting for nearly two years, which the committee said undermined trust and accountability. The committee chairman stated the MoD should not have been tasked with running immigration casework. The Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (Arap) scheme, set up in 2021, was closed in July 2025.
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