Security engineering for high-assurance systems.

Protego Stratis provides engineering, ISSE, and applied research support for organizations building and operating secure systems in regulated and mission-critical environments.

Founder and Principal Security Engineer

Daren Childers leads Protego Stratis and provides hands-on security engineering and applied research support for high-assurance systems in regulated environments. His work spans system architecture, ISSE, control design, implementation guidance, and technical evaluation for programs operating under regulatory, assurance, and audit constraints.

M.S., Information and Cybersecurity — UC Berkeley (School of Information)

ISSE Security architecture Controls and assurance Cloud and infrastructure

Core areas of work

Security engineering and applied research for distributed systems, infrastructure, and regulated platforms
Information Systems Security Engineering (ISSE) integrated directly into system architecture and lifecycle
Control design, implementation guidance, and evidence planning for audit-exposed systems
Technical due diligence, prototype evaluation, and risk assessment for emerging systems

Representative areas of work and typical deliverables

Area	What we deliver	Typical outputs
ISSE & security architecture	Security engineering integrated into system architecture and trust boundaries	Architecture packages, security requirements, trust boundaries, threat models, design review findings, remediation guidance
Controls & assurance	Control design and implementation support	Control frameworks, implementation guidance, evidence plans, audit-ready artifacts, readiness and gap assessments
Cloud & infrastructure security	Secure-by-design patterns for cloud and hybrid environments	Reference architectures, identity and access models, segmentation designs, telemetry strategies, IaC security guidance
Applied research support	Prototype implementation and technical evaluation	Prototype implementations, technical evaluations, test plans, performance and risk analyses, transition recommendations
Incident & exposure analysis	Exposure scoping and technical findings	Exposure assessments, root cause analysis, confidence statements, remediation plans, executive-level technical summaries

Public descriptions intentionally omit sensitive architectures, unpublished methods, and internal program details.

Selected work (high-level)

High-assurance architecture and ISSE

Led security architecture and ISSE efforts for regulated systems; produced system security requirements, trust boundary definitions, threat models, and design findings used in program reviews.

Secure infrastructure and access design

Designed identity, access control, segmentation, and audit logging architectures for cloud and hybrid platforms; enabled least-privilege operation and review-ready telemetry.

Applied research and prototype support

Implemented and evaluated prototypes under assurance constraints; delivered test plans, technical findings, and risk assessments supporting transition and funding decisions.

Governance and readiness

Produced control frameworks, implementation guidance, and evidence packages used in audits, readiness reviews, and operational approvals.

What clients receive

System and security architecture packages suitable for design and review
Security requirements, trust boundary definitions, and threat models
Control frameworks with implementation guidance and evidence planning
Audit-ready artifacts and readiness / gap assessments
Prototype implementations, test plans, and technical evaluation reports
Executive-level technical summaries supporting program, funding, and approval decisions

Engagement model

Best fit engagements

Programs building regulated or mission-critical systems with formal review pressure
Engineering teams shipping infrastructure and requiring architecture-level security decisions
Research or early systems preparing for transition, audit, or external funding

Leadership

Daren Childers — Founder and Principal

Security and systems engineer providing hands-on leadership for high-assurance system design, ISSE, and applied research in regulated environments. Work focuses on architecture, control implementation, technical evaluation, and program readiness for systems operating under regulatory, assurance, and audit constraints.

Location: Santa Maria, California
Core areas: Engineering • ISSE • Applied research • Prototyping

Detailed resumes, past performance, and publications available upon request.

Contact

Email: info@ps-cyber.com
Location: Santa Maria, California

If you send a short description of the system, environment, and timeline, I’ll reply with recommended next steps and a scoped engagement option.