Charlotte Chapter Meeting Jan 2020
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020
Time: 1:00pm – 4:00pm
You are cordially invited to attend our next Charlotte InfraGard meeting on Wednesday January 15th at Microsoft from 1-4pm.
Presentation Summary:
The City of Charlotte, North Carolina is poised to welcome up to 50,000 visitors during the 2020 Republican National Convention including 15,000 national and international journalists showcasing Charlotte on a global stage. Major events like the RNC create substantial economic impact. The outcome of the 2012 DNC, an impressive $163.6 million, resulted in a historic high for the most positive economic impact ever produced by a single Charlotte event. However, law enforcement and our national security agencies must also be in a heightened state of alert to protect against nefarious activities by hostile nation states and international and domestic terrorists.
FBI Special Agent Gerd Ballner will discuss the FBI Charlotte’s operational concepts and intelligence planning for the 2020 Republican National Convention.
Special Agent (SA) Gerd J. Ballner, Jr. has served as an FBI Agent for the past 19 years working counterintelligence matters in New York, Washington, DC, and Charlotte. As a new Agent in New York City, SA Ballner investigated threats posed by the Russian government and its intelligence officers collecting science and technology information developed in the U.S. private and public sectors. While in Washington, SA Ballner supervised all offensive and defensive operations against the Russian threat in Washington and the Southeast United States through extensive cooperation with both U.S. Intelligence Community members and our foreign intelligence partners. Since 2012, SA Ballner has worked various counterintelligence and espionage matters in Charlotte. SA Ballner is currently a Crisis Management Coordinator and the FBI Weapons of Mass Destruction Coordinator for North Carolina. He is a graduate of James Madison and Clemson Universities, with previous work experience in pharmaceutical sales, marketing, and training.
SIA Michael Costanzo will provide an a briefing on potential threats that may effect businesses and security during the 2020 Republican National Convention
Mike Costanzo is an FBI Charlotte Intelligence Supervisor with over 15 years working within the US Intelligence Community. Mr. Costanzo’s squad provides both tactical and strategic intelligence to identify trends, advance cases, and develop threat mitigation strategies for the FBI Charlotte Cyber, Counterterrorism, and Counterintelligence squads. Prior to his assignment in Charlotte, Mr. Costanzo was a supervisor in FBI Chicago and FBI Springfield (IL) where he provided intelligence to both the criminal and national security programs with highlighted efforts on priority counterterrorism and public corruption cases.
Before joining the FBI, Mr. Costanzo worked as a Project Manager for Baxter Healthcare and Abbott Pharmaceuticals near Chicago, IL. Mr. Costanzo earned a bachelor’s degree from the United States Military Academy and a Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Tiffin University. Mr. Costanzo also earned a Master’s Certificate in Intelligence Studies from the National Intelligence University. Mr. Costanzo began his intelligence career as a US Army officer with oversees tours in South Korea and Iraq.
Before joining the FBI, Mr. Costanzo worked as a Project Manager for Baxter Healthcare and Abbott Pharmaceuticals near Chicago, IL. Mr. Costanzo earned a bachelor’s degree from the United States Military Academy and a Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Tiffin University. Mr. Costanzo also earned a Master’s Certificate in Intelligence Studies from the National Intelligence University. Mr. Costanzo began his intelligence career as a US Army officer with oversees tours in South Korea and Iraq.
SIA Joseph Szczerba will provide a briefing on the structure of the FBI Charlotte’s Intelligence Program and how the FBI’s Intelligence Program could be of benefit to the Private Sector.
Joseph Szczerba is currently a Supervisory Intelligence Analyst and serves as the Intelligence Program Coordinator for FBI Charlotte. Mr. Szczerba is responsible for managing the FBI intelligence production and integration across the state of North Carolina. Mr. Szczerba has led intelligence teams during fast-paced, critically important situations in response to National Security and Criminal threats within the FBI Charlotte domain.
Mr. Szczerba has extensive experience briefing domestic and international intelligence leaders on cyber threats and trends, including the former FBI Director, the former United States Director of National Intelligence, and international directors of intelligence from across Central and South America at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in Panama City, Panama.
Previous to his current position, Mr. Szczerba led a hybrid Cyber Intelligence Team within FBI Charlotte and he was the FBI Strategic Cyber Domain Manager for the Southeast United States in Jacksonville, Florida. Mr. Szczerba started his FBI career in the Counterterrorism Division at FBI Headquarters in Washington, DC.
Mr. Szczerba received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Buffalo and is an attorney admitted to the bar in the District of Columbia. He completed his Bachelor’s Degree in History and American Studies at St. John Fisher College in Rochester, NY. Mr. Szczerba holds multiple certifications, including CISM, CISSP, GPEN, and GCIH.
Mr. Szczerba has extensive experience briefing domestic and international intelligence leaders on cyber threats and trends, including the former FBI Director, the former United States Director of National Intelligence, and international directors of intelligence from across Central and South America at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in Panama City, Panama.
Previous to his current position, Mr. Szczerba led a hybrid Cyber Intelligence Team within FBI Charlotte and he was the FBI Strategic Cyber Domain Manager for the Southeast United States in Jacksonville, Florida. Mr. Szczerba started his FBI career in the Counterterrorism Division at FBI Headquarters in Washington, DC.
Mr. Szczerba received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Buffalo and is an attorney admitted to the bar in the District of Columbia. He completed his Bachelor’s Degree in History and American Studies at St. John Fisher College in Rochester, NY. Mr. Szczerba holds multiple certifications, including CISM, CISSP, GPEN, and GCIH.
Hope you can join us!
Event Location
Microsoft Campus
8050 Microsoft Way
Charlotte, NC 28273
Event Fees:
Please select how many spots you would like to reserve above: FREE
Registration is closed for this event.
For more information or questions, please email:
info@ncinfragard.com