About the Author

Cletus (Clete) Taylor did not begin his career expecting to become a cybersecurity architect, a civic educator, or an author. He began with a simple desire to understand how things work and why people make the choices they do. That curiosity carried him from the U.S. Navy, where he learned discipline, precision, and clear thinking under pressure, into a long career in security architecture. Over time he discovered something important. The hardest part of cybersecurity is not the technology. It is helping people navigate complexity without fear.

Throughout his career, Clete watched coworkers, families, and entire organizations struggle with digital risks they never asked for. He saw how confusion, noise, and misinformation made people vulnerable. That experience led to his first book, Secure by Habit, which grew out of conversations with everyday people who wanted to feel safe online and needed practical guidance they could trust.

Professionally, Clete serves as Senior Security Architect at Frost Bank, where he leads the enterprise transition to Zero Trust Architecture. His Zero Trust work has expanded into a growing series that begins with ZT Foundations: Building Zero Trust with the Tools You Already Have and ZT Foundations: Protect Surface Walkthroughs. The next two books in the series will focus on automation, the maturation of Zero Trust programs, and the development of adaptive Zero Trust strategies that help organizations evolve with modern threats.

As Clete continued teaching and writing, he realized that the challenges people face extend far beyond cybersecurity. The same forces that confuse people online also shape how they understand their communities, their institutions, and their country. That insight became the foundation of his newest and most personal body of work. The Finding Truth series is a collection of civic discussion books designed to help readers think clearly in a complicated world. The first volume, A Student of Truth, is now available for ARC review and invites readers into a journey of media literacy, civic reasoning, and practical clarity.

Outside of his technical and civic writing, Clete is also a songwriter. Music gives him another way to explore the human side of complexity. It allows him to express the emotions, stories, and experiences that shape how people see the world. Whether he is writing a song, teaching a community group about phishing scams, or guiding a boardroom through Zero Trust strategy, his mission remains the same. He wants to help people find clarity, confidence, and truth.

At the center of everything he does is a simple belief. Clarity is a form of protection. In an age filled with noise, fear, and information overload, Clete Taylor is committed to helping people cut through confusion and find truth that holds up in the real world.

Why I Write — A Letter to You

Dear Reader,

I write because clarity has become harder to find in a world that moves faster than anyone ever asked it to. Technology accelerates every part of our lives. Information arrives in floods instead of streams. Ordinary people are left trying to make sense of risks, headlines, and pressures that feel larger than any one person should have to carry. Over the years I have watched coworkers, families, and entire communities struggle with digital threats they never saw coming and social forces they never felt prepared to face. Confusion creates fear. Noise buries truth. Complexity makes people doubt their own ability to understand what is happening around them.

I write for you. The person who wants clarity instead of jargon. The person who wants facts instead of fear. The person who wants to feel safe online and grounded in the world beyond the screen. My work in cybersecurity taught me that people do not need more complexity. They need guidance they can trust. Secure by Habit grew out of that belief. My Zero Trust series continues it by helping organizations build modern security with practical tools they already have and by showing how automation, maturation, and adaptive strategy can strengthen security without overwhelming people.

But the challenges we face are not only technical. They are civic. They are social. They are human. The same forces that confuse people online also shape how they understand their communities, their institutions, and their country. That is why I created the Finding Truth series. These books are written for readers who want to think clearly in a complicated world and who want to understand the difference between information, persuasion, and truth. The first volume, A Student of Truth, now available for ARC review, invites readers into a journey of media literacy, civic reasoning, and practical common sense.

Outside of my technical and civic writing, I am also a songwriter. Music gives me another way to explore the human side of complexity. It lets me express the stories and emotions that shape how people see the world. Whether I am writing a song, teaching a community group about phishing scams, or guiding a boardroom through Zero Trust strategy, my mission is the same. I want to help people find clarity, confidence, and truth.

If these words give you even a little more understanding in your day, then every page has been worth writing. Thank you for being part of this journey and for choosing to be a student of truth in a world that needs more of them.

Thanks for dropping by,

Clete