Cluster Setup15%

Use Network security policies to restrict cluster level access
Use CIS benchmark to review the security configuration of Kubernetes components (etcd, kubelet, kubedns, kubeapi)
Properly set up Ingress with TLS
Protect node metadata and endpoints
Verify platform binaries before deploying

Cluster Hardening15%

Use Role Based Access Controls to minimize exposure
Exercise caution in using service accounts e.g. disable defaults, minimize permissions on newly created ones
Restrict access to Kubernetes API
Upgrade Kubernetes to avoid vulnerabilities

System Hardening10%

Minimize host OS footprint (reduce attack surface)
Using least-privilege identity and access management
Minimize external access to the network
Appropriately use kernel hardening tools such as AppArmor, seccomp

Minimize Microservice Vulnerabilities20%

Use appropriate pod security standards
Manage Kubernetes secrets
Understand and implement isolation techniques (multi-tenancy, sandboxed containers, etc.)
Implement Pod-to-Pod encryption (Cilium, Istio)

Supply Chain Security20%

Minimize base image footprint
Understand your supply chain (e.g. SBOM, CI/CD, artifact repositories)
Secure your supply chain (permitted registries, sign and validate artifacts, etc.)
Perform static analysis of user workloads and container images (e.g. Kubesec, KubeLinter)

Monitoring, Logging and Runtime Security20%

Perform behavioral analytics to detect malicious activities
Detect threats within physical infrastructure, apps, networks, data, users and workloads
Investigate and identify phases of attack and bad actors within the environment
Ensure immutability of containers at runtime
Use Kubernetes audit logs to monitor access

Mar 2025

I like the breadth of the topics involved, and the fact that it is a hands-on exam. The difficulty feels adequate; I know that other people who obtained the CKS certificate are willing to work, and have a good knowledge of Kubernetes security.

Feb 2025

When preparing you really learn many tools and a lot of context, which will help me in my daily work!

Jan 2025

Performance based exam with clear goals. Practical exams provide clear ways to maintain certification quality. Being extremely time-limited is also good, as it tests how familiar the candidate is with the areas.

Dec 2024

I think it's a useful certification to teach sales and engineers about the latest Kubernetes technology.

Oct 2024

One of the hardest and hands-on certifications in the Industry. One who gains this certification is capable of work in the Kubernetes Cloud Native infrastructure and development sector.

Sep 2024

I have learned many new tools, and how to use them in real world scenarios.

Aug 2024

Hard exam, but if you come prepared with the recommended sources, plus your killer.sh attempts, you will be fine.

Jul 2024

100% practical exam, no “gotcha” questions. A limited focus on rote memorization, with a heavy focus on solid technical understanding of the material at hand. Sets a strong standard/baseline that other IT Certifications should try and meet.

I learned about a lot of security tools I was unaware of. I feel confident that I can secure things within a Kubernetes cluster.

The exam gave a good insight into cloud-native security, and helped me improve my skills as a cloud engineer.

Jun 2024

Hands-on format is really great at testing the practical knowledge and not just theory cramming.

May 2024

I liked that the exam is hands-on, which, together with the time limit, encourages a certain level of proficiency, which turned out to help me be a little faster and more efficient with Kubernetes tasks at my job.

Apr 2024

I like that it is performance-based. And that it is very challenging. It ensures the candidate understands the concepts thoroughly.

Feb 2024

The exam is challenging and covers a broad aspect of the Kubernetes day-to-day administration tasks.

Jan 2024

Time management and hands-on practice are the most important required skills to attend and complete this exam.

Nov 2023

CKS is a great topic. It's the master's degree of the Kubernetes exams, and you need to know the topics well enough to jump right in and solve the questions. I'm still working toward that elite level, so I probably need another attempt or two until I get it. The scars will be worth it.

Oct 2023

It is the perfect addition to the CKAD and CKA because it opens your mind regarding security, auditing, logging, and, last but not least, the ability to troubleshoot various problems related to networking.

This certification is a great opportunity to validate knowledge on some topics and better understand others. It also helped me find interesting job opportunities.

Jul 2023

It is high performance & well adopted & checking the real knowledge exam. It can be a KPI & knowledge indicator for all kinds of DevOps specialists. It is ~2 times harder than CKA, but not in case of task difficulty, but in case of time limitations & you have to do some tasks time-cost things.

Apr 2023

The hands-on element of the exam is my most significant selling point to me. If you can pass the exam, you are capable of operating a Kubernetes cluster. The same cannot be said for many other multiple-choice IT exams.

Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS)

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