Cloud Security Certifications Compared: MCRTP vs OSCP vs SC-500

Cloud security certifications fall into two groups: hands-on exams that make you attack a live environment, and question-based exams that test what you know about securing a platform. Pwned Labs issues hands-on certifications for each major cloud, including MCRTP for Azure and Microsoft 365, which is assessed through a 24-hour exam in a live tenant with no multiple choice section. OSCP+ is the hands-on benchmark for general penetration testing, while SC-500, AWS Security Specialty, CCSK and CompTIA Cloud+ are question-based exams.

Choosing a cloud security certification depends on whether you need to prove you can break things, defend things, or pass a compliance audit. This comparison covers the certifications most relevant to cloud security practitioners in 2026, from hands-on offensive certs to vendor-specific knowledge exams, with data on format, cost, and what each one actually proves. One entry, OSCP, is not a cloud security certification at all: it is the widely recognized hands-on standard for general network and web penetration testing, and it is included here as the benchmark that cloud-specific hands-on exams are measured against.

Certification Comparison Table

The table compares MCRTP, the Pwned Labs certification for Azure and Microsoft 365, with OSCP+ and four question-based cloud exams on format, cost and renewal.

Details as published on each issuer's website, last checked November 4, 2026: pwnedlabs.io, offsec.com, learn.microsoft.com, aws.amazon.com, cloudsecurityalliance.org and comptia.org. Figures can change, so check the issuer before you register.

Hands-On vs Multiple Choice

The fundamental divide among these certifications is between exams that test what you can do and exams that test what you know. Hands-on exams like MCRTP and OSCP require candidates to actually exploit systems and capture flags or write reports within a time limit. Pwned Labs exams sit on the hands-on side: MCRTP, ACRTP and GCRTP each give the candidate 24 hours and an entry point into a live cloud environment, with no multiple choice section. SC-500, AWS Security Specialty, CCSK, and Cloud+ are knowledge-based exams built mainly from questions with set answers, although Cloud+ adds performance-based questions and SC-500 may include interactive components.

For hiring managers evaluating candidates, hands-on certifications provide stronger signal about practical capability. For practitioners building a credential stack, a combination of both, vendor-specific knowledge certs and at least one hands-on offensive cert, covers the broadest range of employer requirements.

MCRTP vs OSCP

OSCP is a widely recognized standard for general penetration testing, but its exam environment is predominantly on-premises infrastructure. Cloud-specific attack techniques such as IAM privilege escalation, token theft, managed identity abuse, and cross-tenant pivoting are not part of the OSCP exam. OffSec's PEN-200 course does now include a module on enumerating and attacking AWS cloud infrastructure, but the OSCP exam itself is built from three standalone machines and an Active Directory set. MCRTP fills that gap: a hands-on, scenario-based exam that proves you can execute real attack chains in Azure and Microsoft 365, the same way OSCP proves you can do it on traditional networks. MCRTP focuses specifically on validating Microsoft cloud offensive capability.

Where OSCP tests breadth across on-premises infrastructure, MCRTP tests depth in Azure, Entra ID and Microsoft 365. The two certifications complement each other: OSCP for traditional infrastructure, MCRTP for the cloud estate. Pwned Labs built MCRTP on the same principle that earned OSCP its reputation: it makes you prove an attack chain hands-on rather than answer questions. Practitioners holding both cover a wider attack surface.

MCRTP vs SC-500: Theory Meets Practice

SC-500 (Implementing End-to-End Security Controls for Cloud and AI Workloads) teaches what Microsoft security controls exist and how to configure them: identity, access and governance through Microsoft Entra ID and Azure Key Vault, storage, databases and networking, compute, and security posture management, with the security of AI workloads now part of the role. It is a knowledge exam focused on configuration and design. MCRTP complements SC-500 by teaching the practical skills you can use on the job the next day: how attackers actually bypass those controls, how to detect those attacks with Microsoft Sentinel and Microsoft 365 logging, and how to chain techniques the way real threat actors do.

Many practitioners pursue both: SC-500 for the foundational knowledge and vendor credibility, MCRTP for the hands-on offensive and defensive capability that turns that knowledge into operational skill.

AZ-500 Retirement and the SC-500 Replacement

Microsoft retired AZ-500 on August 31, 2026 and replaced it with SC-500 (exam: Implementing End-to-End Security Controls for Cloud and AI Workloads), which leads to the Microsoft Certified: Cloud and AI Security Engineer Associate credential and is designed to align with evolving cloud and AI security standards. Key dates:

• Until August 31, 2026: AZ-500 was available and earned the Azure Security Engineer Associate credential, and it counted toward Microsoft Partner skilling requirements.
• From September 1, 2026: AZ-500 is no longer available. SC-500 is the route to the new associate credential.
• If you already hold AZ-500: your certification remains on your active transcript until it expires, after which it moves to historical certifications.

The shift from AZ-500 to SC-500 reflects Microsoft's recognition that cloud security now extends into AI security, covering areas such as securing AI solutions and agents, configuring guardrails for agent security in Microsoft Foundry, and identifying risks from Microsoft Copilot and AI apps. Pwned Labs covers the attacker side of the same shift: the Mirage cyber range includes AI attack vectors alongside broader Azure scenarios, Azure prompt injection labs such as Breach the Perimeter via Prompt Injection are on the platform, and the AI Systems Attack and Defense bootcamp (AISRTP) applies the same tradecraft across AWS Bedrock, Azure AI Foundry, Google Vertex AI and self-hosted stacks. Practitioners pairing SC-500 theory with hands-on training build a more current Microsoft cloud and AI security skill set.

For official details, see the AZ-500 exam page and the SC-500 exam page. Review Microsoft's credential retirement policy at Microsoft Credential Retirement Support.

Salary Impact

Cloud security engineers in the US earn an average of about $152,773, with top earners (90th percentile) near $205,000 (ZipRecruiter, October 2026). Hands-on cloud attack and defense skill matters because the threats keep shifting. Google's Cloud Threat Horizons H1 2026 report found that exploited third-party software overtook weak or missing credentials as the leading initial-access vector in Google Cloud incidents (44.5 percent versus 27.2 percent in the second half of 2025), and Mandiant incident data in the same report found that identity issues gave attackers initial access in 83 percent of incidents involving major cloud and SaaS environments. Pwned Labs certifications test that tradecraft directly, with MCRTP, ACRTP and GCRTP each assessed as a complete attack chain in a live cloud environment.

Which cloud security certification should you take first?

The honest answer depends on what you are trying to change. If you need to get past a CV screen or satisfy a partner requirement, a vendor knowledge exam does that job cheaply and quickly. If you need to demonstrate that you can actually operate, a hands-on exam is the most direct proof, because a multiple choice pass says nothing about whether you can execute an attack chain under time pressure.

A useful sequence for most practitioners is a vendor exam for the platform you work on, followed by one hands-on offensive certification in that same platform. The vendor exam gives you the vocabulary and the configuration knowledge, and the hands-on exam turns it into capability. Reversing the order works too, and tends to be harder going.

If you are choosing between platforms rather than between exam formats, pick the one your organization actually runs. Cloud attack techniques transfer conceptually across providers, and the specifics do not, so depth in the platform you touch daily is worth more than breadth across three you do not. Pwned Labs follows the same logic and certifies each provider separately, with MCRTP for Azure and Microsoft 365, ACRTP for AWS and GCRTP for Google Cloud.

The rest of the range: AWS, Google Cloud, Kubernetes and AI

MCRTP covers Microsoft cloud, and the same format exists for the other two major providers. The Amazon Cloud Red Team Professional (ACRTP) covers AWS attack and detection paths, including IAM abuse, privilege escalation and the routes from an application flaw into the account behind it. The Google Cloud Red Team Professional (GCRTP) covers Google Cloud and Google Workspace, where service account impersonation and transitive delegation dominate the escalation paths.

Two further tracks sit outside the provider split. The Kubernetes Attack and Defense Bootcamp, Professional Edition (KRTP) covers Kubernetes attack paths end to end, beginning in minikube because most tradecraft is identical across providers, then moving through EKS, GKE and AKS to node identity and the route from a service account token into the cloud account behind the cluster. The AI Systems Attack and Defense Bootcamp, Professional Edition (AISRTP) covers LLM-backed and agentic applications, including prompt injection, RAG and embedding poisoning, tool and agent abuse, and MCP and CI/CD agent attack paths. Both are assessed the same way as the provider tracks, with a fully hands-on, unproctored exam.

Each of these Pwned Labs certifications follows the same model: an unproctored, hands-on exam in a live environment, 24 hours to complete an attack chain from a supplied entry point, no penetration test report required, and a certification that does not expire. Each includes 45 days of Academy access and two exam attempts. ACRTP, MCRTP and GCRTP are $399 each; current pricing for the Kubernetes and AI tracks is on their bootcamp pages.

For practitioners working across providers, the M-CRTP3 bundle covers all three for $999 and awards the Multi-Cloud Red Team Professional certification. That is the option worth considering if your estate genuinely spans more than one cloud.

Do certifications actually get you hired?

They get you read. A certification rarely wins an offer on its own, but it can move a CV from the rejected pile to the interview pile, which is the part many candidates are stuck on. Many hiring managers use them as a filter rather than as evidence of skill.

What changes the interview itself is being able to talk concretely about attack paths you have executed and detections you have built. That is the argument for hands-on certifications specifically: the preparation produces the stories as well as the credential. Each Pwned Labs exam is a complete attack chain from a supplied entry point to the flag, so a candidate who has passed one has a full chain to walk an interviewer through.

Multi-Cloud Certification Paths

Pwned Labs offers certified hands-on offensive exams across all three major cloud platforms: MCRTP (Azure/M365), ACRTP (AWS), and GCRTP (GCP/Workspace). The M-CRTP3 credential certifies proficiency across all three. For practitioners working in multi-cloud and hybrid environments (Flexera's 2026 State of the Cloud Report found that 73 percent of respondents use hybrid cloud), a single provider spanning AWS, Azure, and GCP reduces the need to combine certifications from multiple vendors. Explore all certification paths at pwnedlabs.io/bootcamps.

Practice this at Pwned Labs

Pwned Labs runs the attack paths behind these certifications as hands-on labs in live cloud environments. The first three labs below are free, and the prompt injection lab is part of the premium Academy.

• Intro to Azure Recon with BloodHound (Free, Beginner): collect Entra ID and Azure relationship data with AzureHound and use the BloodHound graph to find paths from a low-privilege identity to control of the tenant.
• Unlock Access with Azure Key Vault (Free, Beginner): enumerate an Azure environment, reach a key vault your access can read, and use its secrets to move further in, learning the split between management and data plane.
• Intro to AWS IAM Enumeration (Free, Beginner): start from a set of AWS credentials and work out exactly what they can do by listing and reading IAM policies with the AWS CLI.
• Breach the Perimeter via Prompt Injection (Premium, Beginner): extract secrets from an exposed AI assistant with prompt injection, use a leaked SAS token to reach storage, and move across Entra tenants with service principal credentials.

Frequently asked questions

Is OSCP a cloud security certification?

No. OSCP (OffSec Certified Professional) is a hands-on certification for general network and web application penetration testing. Its exam is built from three standalone machines and an Active Directory set, so it does not test cloud techniques such as IAM privilege escalation, token theft or managed identity abuse, although the PEN-200 course now includes a module on attacking AWS. Cloud-focused hands-on exams such as the Pwned Labs MCRTP, ACRTP and GCRTP fill that gap, and OSCP is often used as the benchmark they are compared against.

What is the best cloud security certification in 2026?

There is no single best certification. Vendor exams such as SC-500 or AWS Security Specialty prove configuration knowledge, while hands-on cloud exams such as MCRTP, ACRTP and GCRTP prove you can execute cloud attacks in a live environment. OSCP is the equivalent hands-on benchmark for general network and web penetration testing rather than a cloud security certification. A strong profile often pairs a vendor exam with at least one hands-on exam.

Is MCRTP the OSCP for the Microsoft cloud?

It is the closest equivalent in format. Both are hands-on and require completing an attack chain rather than answering questions. OSCP tests breadth across predominantly on-premises infrastructure, while MCRTP tests depth in Entra ID, Azure and Microsoft 365.

How much do cloud security certifications cost?

They range widely. Microsoft prices SC-500 by country or region and AWS Security Specialty is $300, and both are knowledge exams. Hands-on options include the Pwned Labs MCRTP, ACRTP and GCRTP at $399 each with two exam attempts, and OSCP+, the general penetration testing benchmark, at $1,699 for a standalone exam attempt or $1,749 with 90 days of the PEN-200 course.

Do cloud security certifications expire?

It varies. Pwned Labs certifications and CCSK do not expire, and the OSCP does not expire while the OSCP+ designation lasts three years. AWS Security Specialty is valid for three years, CompTIA Cloud+ needs 50 continuing education units every three years, and Microsoft role-based certifications renew each year through a free online assessment. AZ-500 retired on August 31, 2026 and was replaced by SC-500.

Which certification should I take if my company uses more than one cloud?

Start with the provider you actually operate in most, since depth transfers better than breadth. If your estate genuinely spans several, the Pwned Labs M-CRTP3 bundle covers AWS, Azure and Google Cloud together for $999 and awards the Multi-Cloud Red Team Professional certification.

Sources

• Microsoft AZ-500 exam page
• Microsoft SC-500 exam page
• Microsoft credential retirement schedule
• Cloud security engineer salary data, ZipRecruiter
• Flexera State of the Cloud Report
• OffSec PEN-200 and OSCP+ pricing
• OffSec OSCP exam guide
• Microsoft SC-500 study guide
• Microsoft Partner Center announcement of the AZ-500 retirement
• Microsoft certification renewal
• AWS Certified Security Specialty exam page
• Cloud Security Alliance CCSK page
• CompTIA Cloud+ exam details
• Google Cloud Threat Horizons Report H1 2026