Mr. Michael Pierno is the Marine Transportation System Specialist – Cyber (MTSS-C) for the U.S. Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg. Prior to working for Sector St. Petersburg, Mr. Pierno worked in the same position at U.S. Coast Guard Sector Virginia. Before working for the U.S. Coast Guard as a civilian he was an active-duty Marine Safety Officer for 20 years. Among the many positions that Mr. Pierno held, he conducted vessel safety/security inspections; facility safety/security inspections, both domestically and internationally; Contingency Planning for responding to man-made and natural disasters; and Marine Casualty Investigations. In his current position, Mr. Pierno works with port partners and stakeholders, including, but not limited to, Facility Security Officers, Vessel Security Officers, and Company Security Officers, to address their respective cybersecurity operations. Mr. Pierno is also a member of the Sector St. Petersburg Area Maritime Security Committee (AMSC) and Co-Chair of the AMSC Cyber Sub-Committee, to help the Captain of the Port (COTP) advance the overall port’s security in compliance with the Maritime Transportation Security Act and the Ports Security Act.