The article discusses the global problem of software piracy. A study by the Business Software Alliance (BSA) found that, in 2001, the lowest level of software piracy around the globe was 20%. There were two countries that had a greater than 90% level of piracy as determined by the BSA study. The loss to software makers from piracy was estimated to be $10.97 billion in 2001. The article discusses economic, regulatory, cultural, and technical reasons why rates of software piracy vary across the globe.