34 records · 6 briefs · 6 study guides

Software credentials, codes & rules.

What you must hold to practice, what employers ask for, which codes you design to, and which regulators can stop a launch — with the prerequisites, renewal cycle and issuing body for each.

0Licenses to practice
18Certifications
8Standards
8Regulations

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Study guides & compliance briefs.

Study guide · 12 min AWS Certified DevOps Engineer - Professional (DOP-C02) Study Guide

Issuing body: Amazon Web Services (AWS) Jurisdiction: Global (vendor certification — not a legal license to practice) Level: Professional Prerequisites: None formal. AWS …

Read → Study guide · 14 min AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional (SAP-C02) Study Guide

Issuing body: Amazon Web Services (AWS) Jurisdiction: Global (vendor certification — not a legal license to practice) Level: Professional Prerequisites: None formal. AWS …

Read → Study guide · 13 min Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) Study Guide

Issuing body: Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) / Linux Foundation Jurisdiction: Global (vendor-neutral — not a legal license to practice) Level: Intermediate Prer…

Read → Study guide · 12 min Software Engineering — Good to Know: Rules of Thumb & Mastery Guide

This guide covers everything in the software discipline catalogue that doesn't get a standalone study file: the standard-practice and niche credentials, the standards and…

Read → Study guide · 12 min Google Cloud Professional Cloud Architect Study Guide

Issuing body: Google Cloud Jurisdiction: Global (vendor certification — not a legal license to practice) Level: Professional Prerequisites: None formal. Google recommends…

Read → Study guide · 2 min Software Engineering — Study Guides

Credential landscape Software engineering has no legal practice license anywhere : no jurisdiction requires a license to write software, stamp code, or call yourself a so…

Read → Compliance brief · 3 min ADA Title III — Digital Accessibility (Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. 12181+)

- Record: software-cert-028 — ADA Title III digital accessibility - Issuing body / enforcer: U.S. Congress (statute); DOJ Civil Rights Division; private plaintiffs via 42…

Read → Compliance brief · 3 min U.S. Export Administration Regulations (EAR) — Encryption/Crypto Controls

- Record: software-cert-033 — US Export Administration Regulations (EAR) - encryption/crypto controls - Issuing body / enforcer: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of In…

Read → Compliance brief · 4 min EU Cyber Resilience Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/2847)

- Record: software-cert-031 — EU Cyber Resilience Act - Issuing body / enforcer: EU legislature; enforcement by national market-surveillance authorities, coordinated with…

Read → Compliance brief · 3 min European Accessibility Act (Directive (EU) 2019/882)

- Record: software-cert-032 — EU European Accessibility Act - Issuing body / enforcer: EU legislature; transposed into national law by each Member State; enforcement by n…

Read → Compliance brief · 4 min FDA Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) Regulation

- Record: software-cert-034 — FDA Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) regulation - Issuing body / enforcer: U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Devices and Radi…

Read → Compliance brief · 4 min Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. 794d) + DOJ Title II rule

- Record: software-cert-027 — Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act + DOJ Title II rule - Issuing body / enforcer: Section 508 — U.S. Access Board (standards), enforced v…

Read →
Certification · flagship AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional (SAP-C02) Amazon Web Services (AWS) · Global (vendor cert) · Professional

Requires: No formal prerequisite; AWS recommends 2+ years hands-on AWS experience and an Associate-level cert first

Renewal: 3 years; recertify by passing the current Professional-level exam

Certification · flagship AWS Certified DevOps Engineer - Professional (DOP-C02) Amazon Web Services (AWS) · Global (vendor cert) · Professional

Requires: No formal prerequisite; AWS recommends 2+ years provisioning/operating AWS environments

Renewal: 3 years; recertify with current Professional-level exam (e.g., SA-Pro retake counts)

Certification Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate (AZ-104) Microsoft · Global (vendor cert) · Associate

Requires: None; Azure fundamentals (AZ-900) recommended

Renewal: Valid 1 year; renewable via free, unproctored online renewal assessment on Microsoft Learn starting 6 months before expi

Certification Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert (AZ-305) Microsoft · Global (vendor cert) · Expert

Requires: AZ-104 (Azure Administrator Associate) required first

Renewal: Valid 1 year; free annual renewal assessment on Microsoft Learn

Certification Microsoft Certified: DevOps Engineer Expert (AZ-400) Microsoft · Global (vendor cert) · Expert

Requires: Requires either Azure Administrator Associate (AZ-104) or Azure Developer Associate (AZ-204) first

Renewal: Valid 1 year; free annual renewal assessment on Microsoft Learn

Certification · flagship Google Cloud Professional Cloud Architect Google Cloud · Global (vendor cert) · Professional

Requires: None formal; Google recommends 3+ years industry experience incl. 1+ year designing/managing GCP solutions

Renewal: Valid 2 years; renewal via shorter 1-hour renewal exam ($100), standard exam, or designated Google Skills courses/badges

Certification · flagship Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) Cloud Native Computing Foundation / Linux Foundation · Global · Intermediate

Requires: None

Renewal: Valid 2 years; retake exam to renew

Certification Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD) Cloud Native Computing Foundation / Linux Foundation · Global · Intermediate

Requires: None

Renewal: Valid 2 years; retake to renew

Certification Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS) Cloud Native Computing Foundation / Linux Foundation · Global · Advanced

Requires: Must hold an ACTIVE CKA certification first

Renewal: Valid 2 years; retake to renew (CKA must remain valid)

Certification · flagship Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) ISC2 · Global · Advanced/Managerial

Requires: 5 years cumulative paid experience across >=2 of 8 CISSP domains (1-year waiver for degree/approved cert); endorsement by an ISC2 member after passing

Renewal: Valid 3 years; 120 CPE credits per cycle (min 40/yr) + $135/year AMF

Certification CompTIA Security+ (SY0-701) CompTIA · Global · Entry/Intermediate

Requires: None formal; Network+ and 2 years IT admin experience with security focus recommended

Renewal: Valid 3 years; earn 50 CEUs + $50/yr CE fee, earn a higher CompTIA cert, or retake exam

Certification Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP+) OffSec (formerly Offensive Security) · Global · Intermediate/Advanced

Requires: PEN-200 course recommended; no formal prereq, but not entry-level

Renewal: Does not expire (lifetime) under current policy

Certification Project Management Professional (PMP) Project Management Institute (PMI) · Global · Advanced

Requires: Bachelor's + 36 months leading projects + 35h PM education (or CAPM), OR no degree + 60 months + 35h education

Renewal: 3-year cycles; 60 PDUs per cycle (min 8 each in Technical, Leadership, Business) + renewal fee

Certification PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP) Project Management Institute (PMI) · Global · Intermediate

Requires: 12 months general project experience + 8 months agile project experience + 21 contact hours of agile training

Renewal: 3-year cycles; 30 PDUs per cycle

Certification Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) Scrum Alliance · Global · Foundational

Requires: Mandatory 16-hour live course with a Certified Scrum Trainer (CST); no degree/experience required; exam (50 questions, 74% pass, open-book) within 90 days

Renewal: Valid 2 years; 20 Scrum Education Units (SEUs) + $100 renewal fee per cycle

Certification SAFe Agilist (SA) Scaled Agile, Inc. · Global · Intermediate

Requires: Leading SAFe course (16h) required to sit the exam; 5+ years software/product experience recommended

Renewal: Annual renewal fee (~$100/yr) plus continuing education

Certification Certified Software Development Professional (CSDP) - DISCONTINUED IEEE Computer Society · Global · Mid-career

Requires: Historic: 4-6 years professional experience + bachelor's degree + 3.5h/180-question SWEBOK exam

Renewal: N/A - program ended after December 2014; previously issued certificates remain valid

Certification Certified Software Development Associate (CSDA) IEEE Computer Society · Global · Entry

Requires: Intended for graduating students/early-career; exam-based, no experience required

Renewal: Unknown - thin sourcing

Standard ISO/IEC 25010 (SQuaRE - Systems and software Quality Requirements and Evaluation) ISO/IEC JTC 1 (SC 7) · International · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - standard (current edition 2023)

Standard ISO/IEC/IEEE 12207:2017 (Software and systems engineering - Software life cycle processes) ISO/IEC/IEEE · International · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - standard

Standard ISO/IEC 27001:2022 + ISO/IEC 27002:2022 (Information Security Management) ISO/IEC JTC 1 (SC 27) · International · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - standard; management-system CERTIFICATION (by accredited body, 3-yr audit cycle) applies to the organization's ISM

Standard SOC 2 (System and Organization Controls 2) AICPA (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants) · US-origin, used globally · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - attestation REPORT, not a certification; typically re-examined annually (Type II observation period 6-12 months)

Standard IEEE 1012 (System, Software, and Hardware Verification and Validation) IEEE Standards Association · International · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - standard (2016 edition current as of research)

Standard SWEBOK (Guide to the Software Engineering Body of Knowledge), v3 IEEE Computer Society · International · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - body of knowledge (guide)

Standard OWASP ASVS (Application Security Verification Standard) / OWASP Top 10 OWASP (Open Worldwide Application Security Project) · International (community standard) · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - standard

Standard NIST SP 800-218 (Secure Software Development Framework - SSDF) NIST (US Dept. of Commerce) · US (federal), adopted broadly · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - guidance framework

Regulation Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. 794d) + DOJ Title II rule US Congress / US Access Board / DOJ · US - federal agencies (508); state/local government (Title II) · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - statutory obligation

Regulation ADA Title III (Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. 12181+) - digital accessibility US Congress (enforced via DOJ + private litigation) · US - private businesses (places of public accommodation) · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - statutory obligation

Regulation GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) EU (European Parliament/Council); enforced by national supervisory authorities + EDPB · EU/EEA (extraterritorial - applies to any org processing EU residents' data) · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - statutory obligation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679, enforceable since 25 May 2018)

Regulation PCI DSS v4.0.1 (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) PCI Security Standards Council (founded 2006 by Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Discover, JCB) · Global (wherever cardholder data is handled) · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - contractual; validation typically annual (QSA assessment or SAQ)

Regulation EU Cyber Resilience Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/2847) EU (European Parliament/Council); enforcement via national market-surveillance authorities + ENISA · EU (applies to products placed on the EU market regardless of manufacturer location) · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - statutory obligation

Regulation EU European Accessibility Act (Directive (EU) 2019/882) EU (European Parliament/Council); enforcement via national market-surveillance authorities · EU · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - statutory obligation

Regulation US Export Administration Regulations (EAR) - encryption/crypto controls BIS (Bureau of Industry and Security, US Dept. of Commerce) · US (extraterritorial via deemed exports and reexport rules) · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - statutory/regulatory obligation

Regulation FDA Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) regulation US FDA (Digital Health Center of Excellence) · US · n/a

Requires: n/a

Renewal: n/a - premarket clearance/approval + postmarket surveillance

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