WASHINGTON ( CNN ) -- Some private security guards hired to protect the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan say their contractor has allowed widespread mistreatment , sexual activity and intimidation within their ranks , according to the watchdog group Project On Government Oversight ( POGO ) . A spokeswoman for watchdog group POGO said hazing at a camp for security guards went `` well beyond partying . '' The group sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday , and briefed reporters on its findings , which it said are based on e-mails and interviews with more than a dozen guards who have worked at the U.S. compound in Kabul . The company -- ArmorGroup , North America -- has a security contract with the State Department to provide services through July 2010 , and has been cited several times for shortcomings in the security required by the contract . A U.S. Senate panel two months ago was critical of the State Department for not closely supervising ArmorGroup , after a series of warning letters from the State Department in the year leading up to the panel 's inquiry . When CNN contacted Wackenhut , the corporate parent of ArmorGroup , a spokesperson there said the company would have a response Wednesday . The U.S. Embassy said Wednesday it was taking the allegations very seriously . `` Nothing is more important to us than the safety and security of all Embassy personnel -- Americans and Afghan -- and respect for the cultural and religious values of all Afghans , '' it said in a statement . `` We have taken immediate steps to review all local guard force policies and procedures and have taken all possible measures to ensure our security is sound . '' Should initiation rituals such as hazing be allowed ? Sound off below . POGO says two weeks ago it began receiving whistleblower-style e-mails , some with graphic images and videos , that are said to document problems taking place at a non-military camp for the guards near the U.S. diplomatic compound in Kabul . `` This is well beyond partying , '' said Danielle Brian , POGO 's executive director , after showing a video of a man with a bare backside , and another man apparently drinking a liquid that had been poured down the man 's lower back . She told CNN that ranking supervisors were `` facilitating this kind of deviant hazing and humiliation , and requiring people to do things that made them feel really disgusted . '' Watch claims that alleged hazing at the U.S. Embassy pose a threat to security » . `` This is not Abu Ghraib , '' she said , referring to images and videos of abuse by U.S. military troops against prisoners held at a facility in Iraq . `` We 're not talking about torture , '' she continued , `` we are talking about humiliation , '' by supervisors causing a breakdown of morale , and a `` total breakdown in the chain-of-command . '' In the letter POGO sent to Clinton , Brian wrote that the problems are `` posing a significant threat to the security of the Embassy and its personnel . '' Among the recommendations from the group : immediate military supervision of the private security guards , a review of whether the contract should be revoked , and consideration as to whether government forces should replace private security in a combat zone .
Watchdog : The Two-WayA federal judge in New York has ordered the city to pay $7.5 million for violating a law that requires it to provide access to public records and other information about police misconduct. Watchdog warns Sec . of State Clinton of security threat posed by behavior . ArmorGroup , North America has contract until July 2010 .