Google locks Afghan govt email accounts as Taliban looks for access: Reports

Washington: Google has locked down some Afghan government email accounts, said some reports. Reports have showed how biometric and Afghan payroll databases might be exploited by the new rulers to hunt their enemies since the Taliban’s swift takeover of Afghanistan from a U.S.-backed government.

According to a report of Reuters, the Taliban are seeking to acquire former officials’ emails.

Reports also said that the Taliban had asked a reporter of Reuters to preserve the data held on the servers of the ministry he used to work for. Publicly available mail exchanger records show that some two dozen Afghan government bodies used Google’s servers to handle official emails, including the ministries of finance, industry, higher education, and mines.

Commandeering government databases and emails could provide information about employees of the former administration, ex-ministers, government contractors, tribal allies and foreign partners.

Mail exchanger records show that Microsoft Corp’s email services were also used by several Afghan government agencies, including the ministry of foreign affairs and the presidency. However, it isn’t clear what steps, if any, the software firm is taking to prevent data from falling into the hands of the Taliban.

Meanwhile, a report from Northern Alliance has claimed that more than 1000 Talibans have been killed in Panjshir in 24 hours.