On a hot August evening in San Jose, California, 13-year-old Jason Palmer sends his drone skyward for a routine test—until it picks up something suspicious: a car idling near the scene of a recent high-end burglary. With help from his fearless, fast-thinking neighbor Reba Ng, JP launches a covert surveillance op using drones, night vision, and a GPS tracker to capture evidence and hand it over to his father, a police detective struggling to crack the case. Their tech-fueled sleuthing pays off—but a much bigger mystery is about to unfold.
So begins the first book of the fast-paced adventure series penned by prominent cybersecurity expert Tom Arnold and illustrated by former Disney and DreamWorks director Gary Trousdale: The Digital Detective: First Intervention.
JP, who is about to start high school, is more at home coding flight paths and debugging devices than navigating social life. Reba, bold and athletic, becomes his closest ally. Together, they uncover a second—and far more dangerous—crime: a stolen phone linked to a hacker known as 8Bit, and a shadowy digital marketplace trafficking in stolen data. As the threats shift from physical to digital, JP must rely on every bit of his technical skill to stay one step ahead.
Framed briefly as an adult, JP, now a suspended NSA operative revisiting his earliest case, The Digital Detective: First Intervention is a page-turning coming-of-age cyber thriller that introduces young readers to the tools, risks, and threats in a connected world. It was inspired by a real-life cybersecurity scare when the author’s grandson was approached by a stranger on Roblox.
The Digital Detective: First Intervention offers kids 10 and up a chance to learn basic, yet essential digital safety skills andadults a tool for starting the conversation—while getting lost in an action-packed, high-tech adventure.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Tom Arnold (CISSP, ISSMP, CISA, CFS, GCFE-Gold, GNFA, GWEB, GBFA) is a cybersecurity expert, digital forensics investigator, and educator. He lectures on digital forensics and incident response at San Jose State University and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where he is also helping to develop a new digital evidence and forensics degree program. A co-founder of Payment Software Company (PSC), now part of NCC Group, Arnold has led large-scale breach investigations—some involving more than 7,000 servers—and served as lead investigator in complex threat-hunting operations. He has testified before the U.S. Senate and House on cybersecurity legislation and sits on the steering committee for the Las Vegas branch of the USSS/Cyber Fraud Task Force. He also serves as Operations Manager at Cloud 10 Studios, a full-service animation studio that creates original series, long-form content, and commercial projects.
His novel The Digital Detective: First Intervention was inspired by a real-life cybersecurity scare when Arnold’s grandson was approached by a stranger on Roblox despite parental controls. That moment launched Arnold’s mission to help families andschools recognize hidden online dangers—and to give kids the tools they need to stay safe in the digital world.
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR
Gary Trousdale is an American animator, director, screenwriter, and storyboard artist best known for co-directing Disney classics including Beauty and the Beast (1991), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), and Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001). He later joined DreamWorks Animation, where he directed The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper, Shrek the Halls, and Scared Shrekless, as well as a Rocky and Bullwinkle short.
He now works with Cloud 10 Studios alongside DreamWorks alum Tracey Dispensa, directing upcoming projects The Greatest Gift and Surviving April. In addition to animation, Gary continues to write and design for film and TV—and is now adding bookillustration to his creative pursuits.
THE DIGITAL DETECTIVE: FIRST INTERVENTION
Written by Tom Arnold | Illustrated by Gary Trousdale
Cloud 10 Studios, LLC | March 20, 2025
ASIN| 979-8218603205 |292 pages
PAPERBACK | $12.95