And when interviewing the only thing I ask is “tell me something cool you learned from the CEH/OSCP/CISSP/XYZ” if a candidate has certs, or “tell me what you do to keep learning” if they don’t. The only wrong answers are “nothing” and “I already know all I need to about cybersecurity”

I didn’t have an opinion about CEH at the time and similar to you, I think if they want the cert, do it. If a job wants them to have it, do it. Do I think it should be required? Not really. As long as they have working knowledge and towards applying it is what’s important.