Private companies would only be allowed to use information to protect themselves and their customers--not to gain a competitive advantage--and, in doing so, would be protected from lawsuits. The information shared would be exempted from public disclosure.

Groups like the and the argue that CISPA is too broad. By using vague language, the EFF argues that companies could use the bill to filter content, monitor e-mails, and block access to websites. And, although the bill has little to do with SOPA and PIPA, it does define intellectual property theft as a type of cyberattack, raising concerns that content owners could use the bill to censor websites.

Critics also worry that the bill doesn't limit the type of information that can be shared. "We just want people to know that Congress is on the verge of giving the government incredible new authorities to collect sensitive and personal Internet information and emails," Michelle Richardson, a legislative counsel for the ACLU, .

The Sunlight Foundation notes that shared data between the government and businesses would be exempt from the Freedom of Information Act. "The FOIA is, in many ways, the fundamental safeguard for public oversight of government's activities. CISPA dismisses it entirely, for the core activities of the newly proposed powers under the bill," The Sunlight Foundation