Certification process

From application to public credential.

The public sees one mark. Behind it are scope control, evidence, independent decisions, two-person issuance, complaints, renewal, and revocation.

  1. 01

    Prepare and apply

    Read the standard, inventory services and economy, export a safe evidence index, and identify authority.

  2. 02

    Intake and authority check

    Confirm the applicant controls the product and the application is complete enough to review.

  3. 03

    Freeze exact product scope

    Record platforms, package IDs, build, regions, store listing, services, monetization, servers, flags, and evidence cutoff.

  4. 04

    Conflict screening and assignment

    Screen personal, professional, financial, founder, sponsor, applicant, and competitive conflicts.

  5. 05

    Evidence and product testing

    A reviewer will check every applicable rule against actual behavior and sufficient evidence.

  6. 06

    Findings, remediation, and retest

    Blocking findings must be corrected and demonstrated in the reviewed build/configuration.

  7. 07

    Independent quality review

    A different qualified person checks the complete case record and recommendation.

  8. 08

    Pass or no-pass decision

    A decision maker who was not the sole reviewer records the result before billing.

  9. 09

    Post-pass contribution or waiver

    After a pass, the $12 annual maintenance contribution is requested or a written waiver is applied.

  10. 10

    Two-person signed credential issuance

    One person prepares and another approves the canonical payload before ES256 signing.

  11. 11

    Live registry and mark use

    The official record shows exact scope, dates, limitations, status, JWS, and report route.

  12. 12

    Changes, complaints, renewal, and status

    Material changes and credible concerns are reviewed; credentials renew, suspend, expire, revoke, or withdraw.