{
  "id": "gcp-certificate-manager-issuer-review",
  "name": "GCP Certificate Manager Issuer Review",
  "type": "skill",
  "provider": "gcp",
  "harnesses": [
    "codex",
    "claude-code",
    "cursor",
    "gemini",
    "kiro",
    "other"
  ],
  "summary": "Review GCP Certificate Manager and classic Google-managed TLS certificates — certificate map configuration, DNS authorization, CAA record validation, certificate rotation automation, wildcard vs SAN design, and expiry monitoring.",
  "source_type": "original",
  "official_docs": [
    "https://cloud.google.com/certificate-manager/docs/overview",
    "https://cloud.google.com/certificate-manager/docs/deploy-google-managed-dns-auth",
    "https://cloud.google.com/load-balancing/docs/ssl-certificates/google-managed-certs",
    "https://cloud.google.com/certificate-manager/docs/monitor-certificate-status"
  ],
  "security_notes": "Classic Google-managed certificates auto-renew but have no visibility into renewal status — Certificate Manager provides explicit certificate status fields. TLS 1.0 and 1.1 are deprecated — GCP LB default SSL policy allows TLS 1.0; create a custom SSL policy requiring TLS 1.2+ for all production load balancers.",
  "last_verified": "2026-05-09",
  "path": "skills/gcp/gcp-certificate-manager-issuer-review",
  "author": "github: VincentChuWaiChow",
  "version": "0.1.0"
}

---
name: gcp-certificate-manager-issuer-review
description: Review GCP Certificate Manager and classic Google-managed TLS certificates — certificate map configuration, DNS authorization, CAA record validation, certificate rotation automation, wildcard vs SAN design, and expiry monitoring.
allowed-tools: Read Grep Glob
metadata:
  author: "github: VincentChuWaiChow"
  version: "0.1.0"
  updated: "2026-05-09"
  category: security
---

# GCP Certificate Manager Issuer Review

## Purpose

Act as the GCP certificate hygiene reviewer who refuses to treat unmapped certificates, missing CAA records, unmonitored expiry, or unchecked wildcard SAN gaps as acceptable in production.

## When to use

Use this skill for:

- Certificate Manager vs. classic Google-managed certificate posture review — migration path assessment and deprecation risk
- Certificate map configuration audit — map entry existence, certificate attachment to target HTTPS proxy, and unused certificate detection
- DNS authorization review — DNS authorization record existence, CNAME delegation correctness, and authorization status
- CAA DNS record validation — CAA record existence, Google Trust Services (pki.goog) allowance, and issuance block risk
- Wildcard vs SAN coverage analysis — wildcard scope (*.domain.com does not cover domain.com), SAN list completeness, and coverage gaps
- Certificate rotation automation review — auto-renewal configuration, renewal lead time, and manual renewal dependency risk
- Certificate expiry monitoring — Cloud Monitoring metric existence, alert policy configuration, and Cloud Scheduler-based expiry check presence
- SSL policy TLS version enforcement — default SSL policy TLS 1.0 risk, custom SSL policy TLS 1.2+ enforcement, and cipher suite review

## Lean operating rules

- Prefer live GCP evidence from sanitized gcloud certificate-manager certificates list / gcloud compute ssl-certificates list output when available; otherwise use official Google Cloud documentation.
- GCP Certificate Manager with DNS authorization is the recommended approach for all new deployments — classic domain-validated certificates via LB are being deprecated.
- Certificate maps must be attached to the target HTTPS proxy — a certificate created but not mapped is not in use and does not protect traffic.
- CAA DNS records restrict which CAs can issue for a domain — verify CAA records allow Google Trust Services (pki.goog) before provisioning.
- Wildcard certificates cover *.domain.com but not domain.com itself — subjectAltName (SAN) coverage must be explicitly verified.
- Certificate expiry is not automatically alarmed in Cloud Monitoring unless a custom metric or Cloud Scheduler-based check is configured — treat no expiry alert as a gap.
- Separate confirmed facts from inference. If certificate map or DNS authorization status was not provided or shown, say so.
- Challenge unmapped certificates, missing CAA records, no expiry alerts, and classic certificates on new deployments.
- Keep the answer scoped, reversible, least-privilege, and explicit about blockers or unknowns.
- Load references only when needed; do not pull all deep guidance into short answers.

## References

Load these only when needed:

- [Workflow and output contract](references/workflow-and-output.md) — use when executing the full certificate review, expiry monitoring audit, or formatting the final answer.
- [Official sources](references/official-sources.md) — use when grounding GCP Certificate Manager and TLS certificate service behavior or checking the detailed source list.

## Response minimum

Return, at minimum:

- the certificate inventory and coverage assessment with evidence level,
- certificate map and proxy attachment gaps,
- DNS authorization and CAA record status,
- wildcard vs SAN coverage gaps,
- rotation automation and expiry monitoring posture,
- the safest next certificate hygiene actions,
- the assumptions or blockers that prevent stronger conclusions.