ISC2
Advanced
Certified Cloud Security Professional
Vendor-neutral proof that you can secure cloud architecture, data and operations, and handle the legal and contract side of cloud services
- Exam
- $599
- Study
- 4-8 months
Level
Advanced level
Advanced certifications are for seasoned professionals with 5+ years of experience. They validate expert-level knowledge, strategic thinking, and leadership capabilities. These certs open doors to senior roles like architect, manager, or CISO.
22 certifications
Next steps
Shape organizational strategy, lead teams, become subject matter expert
Advanced level certifications
ISC23
ISC2
Advanced
Certified in Governance, Risk and Compliance
ISC2's credential, called CAP until 2023, for taking an information system through control selection, assessment, authorization and monitoring
- Exam
- $599
- Study
- 4-6 months
ISC2
Advanced
Certified Secure Software Lifecycle Professional
Tests security across the whole software lifecycle, from requirements and threat modeling to release, patching and supplier code
- Exam
- $599
- Study
- 4-6 months
OffSec1
OffSec
Advanced
OffSec Certified Professional
Proctored 24-hour practical with an Active Directory set; passing now awards lifetime OSCP plus a three-year OSCP+
- Exam
- $1,699
- Study
- 3-6 months
CompTIA1
CompTIA
Advanced
CompTIA SecurityX
CompTIA's senior engineering and architecture exam, formerly CASP+, scored pass/fail and built almost entirely on scenario and requirements-based objectives
- Exam
- $544
- Study
- 6-12 months
ISACA2
ISACA
Advanced
Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control
Shows you can identify, assess and treat IT risk and design controls, with three verified years in both risk assessment and response
- Exam
- $760
- Study
- 6-12 months
ISACA
Advanced
Certified Data Privacy Solutions Engineer
Tests whether you can build privacy into systems and data flows, with privacy engineering making up 39% of the exam
- Exam
- $760
- Study
- 4-6 months
Amazon Web Services1
Amazon Web Services
Advanced
AWS Certified Security - Specialty
Proves you can secure a multi-account AWS organization, from detection and incident response to KMS keys, now tested on the SCS-C03 exam
- Exam
- $300
- Study
- 4-6 months
GIAC5
GIAC
Advanced
GIAC Penetration Tester
Proves you can plan and run an enterprise penetration test, from reconnaissance to Kerberos and Entra ID attacks, in an exam with CyberLive tasks
- Exam
- $999
- Study
- 4-6 months
GIAC
Advanced
GIAC Certified Forensic Examiner
Proves you can reconstruct what a user did on a Windows system from registry, browser, email, USB and cloud storage artifacts, partly in hands-on tasks
- Exam
- $999
- Study
- 4-6 months
GIAC
Advanced
GIAC Network Forensic Analyst
Proves you can trace an attack from network evidence alone, using packet captures, NetFlow, proxy logs and protocol analysis, in a hands-on CyberLive exam
- Exam
- $999
- Study
- 4-6 months
GIAC
Advanced
GIAC Certified Forensic Analyst
Proves you can investigate intrusions across a Windows enterprise using memory forensics, filesystem timelines and NTFS analysis, partly tested in live virtual machines
- Exam
- $999
- Study
- 4-6 months
GIAC
Advanced
GIAC Certified Intrusion Analyst
Proves you can read network traffic at the header level and write detection rules, tested partly through hands-on CyberLive tasks
- Exam
- $999
- Study
- 4-6 months
Google Cloud1
Google Cloud
Advanced
Google Cloud Professional Cloud Security Engineer
Proves you can secure a Google Cloud organization, from IAM and VPC Service Controls to encryption keys, logging and AI workload controls
- Exam
- $200
- Study
- 4-6 months
Cisco1
Cisco
Advanced
Cisco Certified Network Professional Security
Proves hands-on skill with Cisco security products through the SCOR core exam, revised in August 2026, plus one concentration exam
- Exam
- $700
- Study
- 6-9 months
Oracle1
Oracle
Advanced
Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Security Professional
Proves you can secure Oracle Cloud Infrastructure with IAM policies, network segmentation, Vault, Data Safe and Cloud Guard, tested on exam 1Z0-1104-26
- Exam
- $295
- Study
- 4-6 months
Hack The Box1
Hack The Box
Advanced
Certified Penetration Testing Specialist
Proves you can attack web, external and internal Active Directory targets over ten days, then write a commercial-grade report
- Exam
- $210
- Study
- 4-8 months
INE Security2
INE Security
Advanced
INE Security Certified Professional Penetration Tester
Practical INE Security exam where Active Directory work carries 30% of the score and results are auto-graded within hours
- Exam
- $450
- Study
- 4-8 months
INE Security
Advanced
INE Security Web Application Penetration Tester eXtreme
INE Security's most advanced web pentest exam, with API testing at 25% plus OAuth, deserialization and WAF bypass objectives
- Exam
- $450
- Study
- 4-6 months
Centri1
Centri
Advanced
Blue Team Level 2
Proves you can run a 72-hour intrusion investigation, from malware analysis to threat hunting, and write a hand-marked report
- Exam
- $2,648
- Study
- 6-12 months
Zero-Point Security1
Zero-Point Security
Advanced
Certified Red Team Operator
Proves you can run adversary simulation with Cobalt Strike; the £399 course includes unlimited free exam attempts
- Exam
- $529
- Study
- 3-6 months
CNCF1
CNCF
Advanced
Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist
Proves you can harden and monitor a live Kubernetes cluster in a two-hour command-line exam open only to CKA holders
- Exam
- $445
- Study
- 2-4 months