Twenty-two of the world's top technology companies are firmly against the controversial Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (Cisa) now on the floor of the Senate, according to a new poll by internet activists Fight for the Future.

The poll lists Apple, Google, Twitter and Wikipedia as opposing the legislation while Comcast, HP, Cisco and Verizon are among the 12 companies who back or have remained silent on the bill. Cisa is aimed at tightening online security but has been criticised as infringing on civil liberties and privacy.

The bill could come up for a preliminary vote as early as Wednesday. Within the Senate itself, Cisa has both bipartisan support and bipartisan opposition. US Democratic senator Ron Wyden of Oregon was succinct in his distaste for the legislation before the body on Tuesday afternoon, addressing his comments to President Barack Obama: "I heard for days that this bill would have prevented the OPM [Office of Personnel Management] attack," Wyden said. "After technologists reviewed that particular argument, that claim has essentially been withdrawn.

"There is a saying now in the cybersecurity field, Mr President: if you can't protect it, don't collect it. If more personal consumer information flows to the government without strong protections, my view is that's going to be a prime target for hackers."