News
26 April, 2025
D’Aguilar author on world stage
LONG-time D’Aguilar cyber security expert and author Craig Ford has received international acclaim for two of his recent books, winning two prestigious accolades in the 2024 Independent Press Awards.
His books ‘The Shadow World’ and ‘Foresight’ were announced as winners on February 17, with an awards ceremony set in New York on May 3— an event Craig hopes to attend.
Despite having previously written books and articles, these two books are the first to have won awards.
“I never imagined I’d be writing books, let alone winning awards for them,” he said.
“Honestly, it is hard to say how much this means to me.
“To win a US-based award as an Australian author is huge and a significant recognition for my work. It will dramatically increase the awareness of my works across the US in particular but the world as well.
“Beyond coverage, winning two international book awards encourages me to keep going, to write more books, help drive awareness across the country and the world as a whole.”
‘The Shadow World’, winner in the Children’s Book category, is aimed at readers aged 7–14 and their parents.
Through storytelling, it tackles real online threats like sextortion, cyberbullying, and gaming risks in a relatable, age-appropriate way.
“It’s more than a book— it’s a conversation starter between kids and adults,” Craig explained.
“It has questions after each topic to help encourage conversations with adults around each one, helping foster an open dialogue that is very important, especially in the case of sextortion.”
His teen fiction novel ‘Foresight’ was recognised as Distinguished Favourite – Teen Category.
The story follows Samantha, a teenage hacker navigating the world of cybercrime and ethical hacking.
“I wanted to encourage more young women to consider look at cyber security as a career option, to spark some interest,” he said.
“We need diversity in this field, and stories can spark that interest.”
Craig, originally from Inverell, NSW, has lived in D’Aguilar for over a decade with his wife and two children.
A cyber security professional by trade, he founded Cyber Unicorns, which is soon launching a free cyber safety app for families, seniors, and small businesses.
“If one child reads my book and makes a safer choice online because of it, then I’ve done my job.”
