Right now I am happy as a freelance software engineer. I wasn't looking for a new job (I wanted the KNOW), but I _was_ looking for validation among business-types. I also have a few certs from AWS, and attaining those created the validation I needed in Devops/cloud (so it can be worth it for career growth).

Honestly, I just got tired of being THAT developer who willingly shirked his security duties. I always let someone else 'handle it'. In comparison now, I'm much more confident because I know (more) about securing the network and underlying ecosystem that my applications live in.

I think most people hiring want to see a developer who is excited and puts out lots of work. I've always been pursuing this in my free time, which goes a long way to show that I am truly interested in the subject. But at the end of the day, your cert can't secure a network if you can't. Get the KNOW and you'll find an opp w/ or w/out the semantics.

Hope that helps.