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CREDENTIAL / CDA-ARC

Certified DevSecOps Architect

Validate your ability to architect secure-by-design delivery platforms — multi-cloud blueprints, Kubernetes security architecture, policy-as-code, and resilient incident-ready systems.

72
Training hours
4,036
Participants
4.8/5
Average rating
7
Architecture modules

About the Certified DevSecOps Architect

Integrating security into every layer of application and infrastructure is no longer optional — it is critical. The Certified DevSecOps Architect program addresses the real-world demands of architecting secure-by-design systems at scale: from secure coding practices and automated compliance to threat modeling, container orchestration, and cloud-native security.

You will learn to create security blueprints for organizations undergoing digital and DevOps transformation, balancing innovation and agility with governance, risk, and compliance in hybrid and multi-cloud environments. The curriculum is grounded in industry frameworks — NIST DevSecOps guidelines, OWASP SAMM, and SLSA — and culminates in case studies and capstone work designing practical, scalable security solutions.

Why Become a Certified DevSecOps Architect

The architect sits where security and agility converge. Designing security into systems from inception means foreseeing gaps early, automating controls, and driving cultural change across DevOps ecosystems. Demand for this profile is rising sharply, with roles like Cloud Security Architect and DevSecOps Transformation Lead commanding some of the highest salaries in IT. Certification positions you as the trusted leader organizations need to secure their software delivery lifecycle while accelerating innovation.

OUTCOMES / VERIFIED

What You Walk Away With

  • Architect security-first CI/CD pipelines across hybrid and multi-cloud environments
  • Apply shift-left security at the system design level
  • Build automated controls for containers, Kubernetes, microservices, and serverless
  • Develop security blueprints aligned with ISO 27001, GDPR, HIPAA, and SOC 2
  • Apply NIST DevSecOps guidance, OWASP SAMM, and SLSA supply-chain levels
  • Lead threat modeling, risk prioritization, and incident response by design

MODULES / SEQUENCED

Certification Agenda

  • DevSecOps vs traditional security architecture
  • Business drivers for secure architecture
  • Key principles and pillars of DevSecOps

  • Architecting secure continuous integration pipelines
  • Security gateways and pre-deployment validation
  • Secrets management and governance

  • Secure container runtime design
  • Kubernetes network, RBAC, and Pod Security
  • Admission controllers and policy enforcement with OPA/Gatekeeper

  • Securing AWS, Azure, and GCP workloads
  • Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) best practices
  • IaC scanning and hardening at the platform level

  • Advanced methodologies — STRIDE, PASTA, MITRE ATT&CK, kill chain
  • Risk prioritization and security metrics
  • Architectural mitigation strategies

  • Building compliance into CI/CD
  • Automatic monitoring of compliance violations
  • Controls for GDPR, PCI-DSS, and HIPAA

  • Resilient architecture principles
  • Fault injection and chaos security testing
  • Secure monitoring and alerting systems

LAB-ENV / ACTIVE

Hands-on Labs and Projects

  • LAB-01 Design a reference architecture for a secure multi-cloud CI/CD platform (capstone)
  • LAB-02 Implement an admission-control policy suite with OPA/Gatekeeper for a Kubernetes estate
  • LAB-03 Produce a SLSA-aligned software supply chain security blueprint with SBOM generation
  • LAB-04 Run an architectural threat model and present risk-prioritized mitigations to stakeholders

TOOL-GRID

Tools and Technologies Covered

  • Jenkins / GitHub Actions / GitLab CI
  • Kubernetes
  • OPA / Gatekeeper
  • Vault
  • Terraform
  • Checkov / tfsec
  • AWS / Azure / GCP
  • CSPM tooling
  • OWASP SAMM
  • SLSA framework
  • NIST DevSecOps guidance

TARGET / OPERATORS

Who This Is For

  • DevOps and cloud architects
  • Security architects
  • Lead DevOps engineers and SREs
  • Cybersecurity managers
  • Solution architects and technical leads

PRE-FLIGHT / CHECK

Prerequisites

  • Strong understanding of DevOps and cloud concepts (AWS/GCP/Azure)
  • Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines such as Jenkins, GitLab CI, or GitHub Actions
  • Basic understanding of application security, vulnerability scanning, and containerization
  • Experience in infrastructure or software architecture roles is highly beneficial

EXAM / PROCTORED

Certification Exam Details

Format
Multiple choice, multiple answer
Delivery
Testing center or online proctored exam
Duration
180 minutes
Cost
300 USD (practice exam 40 USD)
Languages
English, Japanese, Korean, Simplified Chinese

FAQ / DECRYPTED

Frequently Asked Questions

Senior technologists who design systems others build — cloud architects, security architects, platform leads, and senior SREs who need to make security a property of the architecture itself.

Cloud Security Architect, Platform Security Lead, and DevSecOps Transformation Lead — among the highest-paying roles in the industry today.

NIST DevSecOps guidelines, OWASP SAMM, SLSA supply-chain levels, and compliance regimes including ISO 27001, GDPR, HIPAA, SOC 2, and PCI-DSS.

Yes — case studies and a capstone where you design a practical, scalable security architecture for a modern cloud-native delivery platform.

No, but you need genuine architecture or senior engineering experience. The Engineer track is the better entry point if you are still primarily hands-on-keyboard.

INITIATE / CONTACT

Ready to Build Security Into Your Delivery?

Talk to a DevSecOps advisor about certifications, team training, consulting, automation, or hiring vetted experts.

contact@devsecopsschool.com +1 (469) 756-6329