Barings Law takes first steps towards suing MoD over Afghan data breach
15/12/2025 | Financial Times
Around 1,000 Afghan individuals affected by the 2022 personal data breach are preparing to sue the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for failing to protect their personal information, which placed them at risk of Taliban reprisals. The claimants, represented by the Manchester-based law firm Barings, have issued a “letter before action,” marking the initial step in a legal battle that could redefine victims' rights in data breach cases.
The law firm is seeking a minimum of £50,000 in compensation for each claimant, totalling approximately £50 million, while requesting anonymity in court for safety reasons. Many of the claimants include former Afghan police, judiciary members, and special forces who are now in precarious situations after having collaborated with UK forces.
The MoD has stated that it will "robustly defend against any legal action or compensation."
£ - This article requires a subscription.
Training Announcement: Freevacy offers a range of independent data protection qualifications from IAPP and BCS. Our certified courses are available at foundation and practitioner levels and cover multiple legal jurisdictions, data protection operations management, and the implementation of complex privacy solutions in technical environments. Find out more.
What is this page?
You are reading a summary article on the Privacy Newsfeed, a free resource for DPOs and other professionals with privacy or data protection responsibilities helping them stay informed of industry news all in one place. The information here is a brief snippet relating to a single piece of original content or several articles about a common topic or thread. The main contributor is listed in the top left-hand corner, just beneath the article title.
The Privacy Newsfeed monitors over 300 global publications, of which more than 6,250 summary articles have been posted to the online archive dating back to the beginning of 2020. A weekly roundup is available by email every Friday.