Australia's copyright police openly admit they won't bust you for downloading movies, but they're asking ISPs to do their dirty work for them. Would a warning from your ISP scare you away from BitTorrent?

For years Australia's copyright enforcers have privately admitted they have no intention of dragging local file-sharers through the courts US-style. Now the head of the Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT) has gone on record saying copyright holders are only interested in chasing those who release pirate copies of movies, not people sitting at home downloading them. Chasing people who sit at home downloading Lost is " not something we should be wasting police resources on," says AFACT executive director Adrianne Pecotic.

Pecotic is placing her hopes on getting ISPs to warn their users against file-sharing and cutting off their access after multiple violations. She thinks that 90 per cent of people will stop file-sharing when they realise it's illegal, and the other 10 per cent will respond to threats of disconnection. ISPs have become the latest whipping horse for the copyright police, but it remains to be seen if they'll have any more luck than with previous campaigns.

The problem is that the ISPs have no interest in being judge and jury when it comes to file-sharers. Anecdotal evidence suggests that ISPs are already passing on warnings to their customers, but the Internet Industry Association has said it will take more than AFACT's allegations for ISPs to start disconnecting users.

The copyright police are fighting a war they can never win, but they know they can keep piracy to a minimum through a campaign of Fear, Uncertainly and Doubt. I think they'd be better off addressing the reasons why people download movies, rather than constantly looking for ways to plug holes in a sinking ship.

Considering AFACT admits it has no interest in dragging you through the courts, and ISPs have no interest in cutting you off without a conviction, would a warning from your ISP stop you file-sharing?