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Bernards, though, says the movie industry isn't too worried. "With the onslaught of digital projection - which we welcome because we think it's a good idea - a lot of safety mechanisms have been put in place to ensure that movies aren't pirated that way. Some think it will be even safer."

Still, no one thinks the success of Operation Knockoff means the end of movie piracy. "Eventually, new cammers will come out, there will be more wholesalers, and the problem will be right where it was again," says Berglas. "We definitely put a dent in it temporarily. Hopefully we put a dent in it permanently, where guys are wary about doing it. But in a city like New York, there's going to be somebody who comes right up, learns the trade, and is able to do it."

And DVD bootleggers are really much like cockroaches - they're everywhere and would probably survive a nuclear war. Notes Berglas, who works at the FBI's headquarters in lower Manhattan, "We've even had guys selling them right in front of our building."

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