Every one I've ever seen. At a minimum they'll want an email address or to chat with you on some service like discord that requires a sign up. The process leaves breadcrumbs everywhere.
> This has literally never happened.
It absolutely has. It usually happens after the site operator has been identified. They offer reduced charges if the site operator agrees to continue to keep the site running like normal while they collect the data. When it works according to plan, you won't ever hear about it. The site just eventually shuts down one day and the people busted with the data they collect are contacted directly. Sometimes it gets out though. For example: https://torrentfreak.com/torrentspy-ordered-to-spy-on-its-us...
> MAFIAA groups don’t even bother to sue private tracker uploaders anymore, what do you mean by “caught”?
This is also dead wrong, lawsuits still continue to this day against uploaders, but the vast majority of them never make it to a courtroom since the person they caught is usually forced into settlements, the terms of which are rarely disclosed to the public, but nearly always involve paying large sums of money and an admission of guilt.
Their main focus isn't on targeting uploaders because they now know they can get billions from suing ISPs, but these site raids are huge wins for them and they aren't turning down opportunity when it lands right in their laps.