Mg-doped CuO nanoparticles (Cu1-xMgxO) capped with ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA), 0.000 ≤ x ≤ 0.020, have been synthesized by the co-precipitation route. The anti-corrosion behavior of 10 ppm of pure and Mg-doped CuO nanoparticles was studied on mild steel in 0.5 M hydrochloric (HCl) and sulfuric (H2SO4) acids, containing 1% of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) as surfactant. Potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy were employed to study their anti-corrosion behavior. Based on the results provided, the successful corrosion inhibition of mild steel in 0.5 M HCl and H2SO4 solutions has been established and confirmed by Raman measurements at 50 min in the presence of pure and Mg-doped CuO nanoparticles. Mg-doped CuO nanoparticles enhanced the corrosion protection of mild steel in 0.5 M HCl and H2SO4 solutions. This might be attributed to the adsorption reaction of Mg2+ ions that form a protective film on the mild steel surface. This was confirmed by Raman spectra in both media, where the corrosion products formed such as hematite, goethite, maghemite, and green rust were detected and analyzed.