The Recording Industry Association of American filed a new wave of copyright infringement lawsuits against 532 computer users accused of illegally downloading copyrighted music, according to an RIAA press release.

The move comes nearly four months after the RIAA began increasing its vigilance in suing individuals using peer-to-peer file-sharing networks to exchange copyrighted music.

The new lawsuits use a “John Doe” process of litigation, which is used to sue individuals whose names are unknown by identifying defendants through their Internet Protocol or IP address. After a lawsuit is filed, the plaintiffs can subpoena the information needed to identify the defendant by name.

“Our campaign against illegal file sharers is not missing a beat,” Cary Sherman, President of the RIAA, said in the release. “The message to illegal file sharers should be as clear as ever – we can and will continue to bring lawsuits on a regular basis against those who illegally distribute copyrighted music.”

The RIAA filed the new round of lawsuits after a federal appeals court decision reversed a series of decisions in favor of the RIAA. The ruling said that subpoenas could not be sent by asking Internet service provides for the identity of file swappers without a judge’s consent.

“We are not unsympathetic either to the RIAA’s concern regarding the widespread infringement of its members’ copyrights, or to the need for legal tools to protect those rights,” the court opinion read. “It is not the province of the courts, however, to rewrite [copyright law] in order to make it fit a new and unforeseen Internet architecture, no matter how damaging that development has been to the music industry.”

The RIAA maintains that the use of peer-to-peer networks such as Kazaa hurts user-pay services such as iTunes and the new Napster.

“The context as we move forward has improved dramatically,” Mitch Bainwol, Chairman and CEO of the RIAA, said in the release. “The debate isn’t digital versus plastic. It isn’t old versus new. Here’s what it is: Legitimate versus illegitimate . It’s whether or not digital music will be enjoyed in a fashion that supports the creative process or one that robs it of its future.”

The RIAA said that it would still offer defendants an opportunity to settle their cases out of court.