PECB’s Certified Lead Implementer and Lead Auditor schemes are now independently accredited under ISO/IEC 17024:2012, giving employers a verified benchmark for AI governance competence.

As of August 18, 2026, PECB Group Inc. has become the first certification body in the world to be accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) for the certification of persons implementing and auditing AI systems. The extension to scope of PECB’s UKAS accreditation for the certification of persons under ISO/IEC 17024:2012covers the following personnel certification schemes:
● PECB Certified ISO/IEC 42001 Lead Implementer
● PECB Certified ISO/IEC 42001 Lead Auditor

ISO/IEC 42001:2023, published in December 2023, is the first international standard for artificial intelligence management systems. It specifies requirements and provides guidance for establishing, implementing, maintaining, and continually improving an artificial intelligence management system.

As organizations move from writing AI policies to operating AI systems at scale, boards, regulators, and customers are asking for evidence that the people designing and auditing those systems know what they are doing. Accredited personnel certification is how that evidence gets established, and until now it has been thin on the ground.

“The center of gravity in AI has shifted from building models to operating them, and increasingly to systems that act with real autonomy. That moves the hard questions out of the lab and into governance and audit; where what’s needed is demonstrable competence, not enthusiasm. Accreditation is what makes that competence legible to an employer, a regulator, or a board, and that’s what our candidates now carry,” said Artan Mustafa, COO at PECB.

Part of the extension to scope process involved UKAS assessing PECB’s conformity with the applicable accreditation requirements for the operation of these personnel certification schemes, including ISO/IEC 17024:2012. The definitive scope of accreditation is set out in PECB’s current UKAS schedule of accreditation.

As organizations increasingly adopt artificial intelligence technologies, the need for qualified professionals who can implement and audit AI management systems continues to grow. Leanie Du Toit, Director of Corporate, Certification and Verification at UKAS, said: “We congratulate PECB on the extension of its UKAS-accredited scope to include the ISO/IEC 42001 Lead Implementer and Lead Auditor personnel certification schemes. UKAS accreditation provides independent assurance that these certification schemes are operated competently, consistently and impartially in accordance with internationally recognized accreditation requirements.”

To view the Accreditation Certificate, please visit: pecb.com/en/accreditations-and-affiliations.

About PECB
PECB is a leading certification body dedicated to fostering digital trust through comprehensive education, certification, and certificate programs across various disciplines. We empower professionals to develop and demonstrate their competence in digital security and other areas of expertise by providing world-class certification programs that adhere to internationally recognized standards.

PECB works through a network of more than 2,600 partners and 2,100 trainers worldwide, delivering courses online and in person. Its portfolio is developed with subject-matter experts and updated to reflect current standards and practice.
For more information, please visit pecb.com.

About UKAS
The United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) is the national accreditation body for the UK. It is appointed by (but operates independently of) government through a memorandum of understanding between UKAS and the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST). UKAS’s role is to assess the technical competence and impartiality of organizations that provide certification, inspection, testing, calibration, validation and verification services (collectively known as conformity assessment services) against the requirements of nationally and internationally agreed standards. UKAS is not a regulating, policing, monitoring or standards-defining body ukas.com. Certificates issued by UKAS-accredited conformity assessment bodies are recognized internationally through UKAS’s participation in the Global Accreditation Cooperation Incorporated (Global ACI) Multilateral Recognition Arrangement (MRA) global-aci.org.