I personally love QBtorrent and the built in search engine, plus if you look for it there are block lists you can quickly install into it that blocks you from connecting to known IP addresses of copyright enforcers but I’d still recommend a VPN anyways for good measure from your ISP but those are cheap and easy too.

I definitely seed a lot more than I did in the 2000s but I have fiber and unlimited data so that’s an easier ask.

There are supposedly great private torrent sites but I’ve been ok with the ones everyone else uses and haven’t figured out if I need to do different.