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Compare certifications

Pick up to 3 certifications and compare them side-by-side on cost, exam format, recertification, salary signal, quality, and domain coverage.

GIAC · professional
GOAA
GIAC Offensive AI Analyst

GOAA is GIAC's specialized certification for offensive AI techniques and targets red teamers, penetration testers, and SOC analysts who need to understand and simulate AI-enabled attack tools. It is based on SANS course SEC535 and features GIAC's well-known exam structure with optional CyberLive component (practical lab environment). Strength: GIAC certifications enjoy high credibility in the security industry, and the offensive perspective on AI is a differentiating unique selling point. Weakness: The certification does not cover defensive controls, AI supply chain security, or governance frameworks – it is clearly tailored to offensive specialists and thus addresses only a small segment of the market. At 999 USD exam fee plus additional SANS course costs, the financial investment is substantial.

Official page
GIAC · professional
GASAE
GIAC AI Security Automation Engineer

GIAC certification for AI Security Automation. Focus on agentic workflows, automated adversary emulation, AI-enabled response playbooks. Launched April 2026 — brand new.

Official page

Cost

Exam fee
GOAA$979
GASAE$979
Annual maintenance fee
GOAA
GASAE
3-year cost of ownership
GOAA$979
GASAE$979

Exam mechanics

Pass mark
GOAA70% (scaled per attempt)
GASAE70% (scaled per attempt)
Retake policy
GOAA$999 fee · 30d wait
GASAE$999 fee · 30d wait
Study time
GOAA100–200 hrs
GASAE
Validity
GOAA4 yrs
GASAE4 yrs
CPE / yr
GOAA9 CPEs
GASAE9 CPEs
Delivery
GOAAmixed
GASAEmixed

Salary signal (US base)

Range
GOAA$130K – $200K
GASAE$130K – $200K
Median
GOAA$160,000
GASAE$160,000
Premium %
GOAA
GASAE
Role context
GOAAAI red team / offensive AI analyst, US, 4-6 years. New role category.
GASAEAI security automation engineer, US, 4-6 years. Brand-new role category.

Quality (4-axis rubric · 0–10)

Schema quality
GOAA7.5
GASAE7.5
Practice evidence
GOAA6.0
GASAE6.5
Maintenance
GOAA7.0
GASAE8.5
Market recognition
GOAA5.5
GASAE4.0
Average
GOAA6.5
GASAE6.6

Recognition & lifecycle

Recognition
GOAAGlobal
GASAEGlobal
ISO 17024 accredited
GOAA
GASAE
DoD 8140 baseline
GOAA
GASAE
Holders worldwide
GOAA
GASAE
Current version
GOAALaunched 2024 (2024-09)
GASAELaunched 2024 (2024-09)

Domain coverage

A8Threat Intelligence
GOAA● core
GASAE·
C1Adversarial Machine Learning
GOAA·
GASAE● core
C2LLM-Specific Attacks
GOAA·
GASAE● core

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