The thesis author noticed on deployments to the Middle East that leaders allowed locals to sell pirated media to troops on base. As an officer who protects information as a career, he thought it behooved him to investigate this situation and ask, "How effective are DoD policies on copyrighted media?" The research focused on the cultural divide on copyright between the U.S. and two developing countries, Afghanistan and Iraq. To understand this difference, the author conducted research on the following group's viewpoints; the local inhabitants, the victims of piracy and intellectual property holders, legislation and enforcement agencies, and the cultural effect on Soldiers. Unfortunately, there seems to be no history of analysis or U.S. prosecution of media copyright infringement in these countries. However, comparing the laws that govern U.S. citizens, customs regulations, the rights given to intellectual property holders, and written guidance given to Soldiers in these countries, it is clear that there are discrepancies which have negatively changed the culture of the American Soldier. Given the growing trend of harsher legislation and enforcement, Soldiers potentially face future U.S. or international felony charges if the current practices and guidance continue.

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