Let’s say you buy a book from Amazon or Flipkart, unknowingly you are becoming a part of an industry which is not just about you getting that book but much more.

Sure, online stores are a very important aspect of E-commerce but it’s not just that. As B2C did, B2B professionals are also relying on E-commerce today. It is an efficient way of business and has already acquired good taste in the market. Today, many businesses are trading their products and conducting monetary transactions through online modes.

Supply chain management, Online fund transfer, integrated inventory management, digital marketing, are some of the elements in this culture that have radically changed the way businessmen looked at their work. The growth is exponential and still easy to grasp. It is said to be the way of the future as it proposes many benefits which the traditional method lacked.

One of the most prominent features of this is that It’s more transparent. It also helps in the organization of real-time inventory management and finances in a Business to Business model. And what impact does it have on Business to Consumer scenario? Well, you can see what a giant consumer service company Amazon is today!

So, the actual face for the daily workings of this method is the Software and Applications that are available in almost everyone’s pocket or at home. So, it becomes of utmost importance to test these applications to ensure a safe and growing future.

Let’s have a look at some main reasons to do so!

 

1) User-Friendliness

It’s not false when they say ‘Consumer is god’. On the contrary, it is quite the ultimate truth in the B2C working environment. Here, one needs to design an app considering the taste of the target consumer group. Without providing features that are user friendly, they won’t survive. But, while doing this, it is important to take care of the functionality of the application. It might be because of the technical load that these websites go through. Sometimes too much traffic loads the application and affects the functionality of the website.

That’s why testing the functionality of the site becomes an important task. Mainly at the time of load. It should be done to ensure a user-friendly experience even at the high-traffic times.

 

2) Browsers variation

The world is a democratic place. People from different cultures behave differently and use different things. It’s not just history. Even in the techno-driven world today, people are going to use different methods to do different things. Just like devices, there is a variety in the browsers.

Any E-commerce website today is filled with different features and options. There are Images, Videos, Social Media Plug-ins, and whatnot. Sure, it helps the consumer to get a good idea about the product or the company but it also becomes difficult if it doesn’t appear in the supposed layout.

One should expect it to happen as these websites are accessed by people from various browsers like Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, etc. Here the tester comes in. The testing of these websites to work in different web browsers should be done pre-release. And not to ignore that Post-release constant monitoring and testing is needed. It must be done to ensure smooth experience to the consumer regardless of the browser she is using.

 

3) Devices variability

On the similar lines as the earlier point, the devices also differ. Not everyone is going to use the website or application from their smartphones. It could be anything like Computers, laptops, tablets, and whatnot.

So, it is necessary to test the website or application concerning the usage of different devices. It should be a smooth experience for the consumer.

 

4) Secure Applications

Out of all the applications, The E-commerce type is the most vulnerable. It is highly probable that the security of these apps and websites could get breached as the transactions and trade here is monetarily important to both a businessman and a consumer.

Important personal data about the consumer like a PIN number, Debit/Credit card number, etc are at a threat if the security testing of these apps is not done right away. Also, remember to test the security regularly as the danger is present all the time.

 

5) Billing

The companies should be aware of processing the billing process of these websites correctly. There should not be any error or problem in the billing as it would make a bad impression on their consumer base, ultimately impacting the business.

When companies offer discounts and offer on their products this way, they need to ensure that the processing of that discount is done finely as the consumer won’t be happy if anything goes wrong. It is necessary to make sure that the customer feels happy about your company and have a safe and easy experience while performing these formalities.

Things like adding taxes, generation of the invoice, Emailing the bill to the consumer should go without any error to give the customer the satisfaction and to make her/him feel safe.

 

In conclusion,

We know that this is an ever-growing market. Many new companies are starting their business with the help of this and many big companies have already made their mark based on this digital manifesto.

Both these businesses should constantly test their sites and applications for the given reasons. If not, there are very fewer chances of them surviving in the market. While doing this, they should make sure that they are testing the sites by selecting the correct methods and performing the right tests.

This will only guarantee them more consumers and most importantly, happy once!

 

 

Though automation testing is the method of the new era, many techno-geeks and testers prefer the old-school manual testing method. We know that it’s hard to get around the new method and get adapted to the Automation but if not done, it’s your loss.

Automation testing provides many benefits which one cannot achieve through manual testing. Instant feedback, more frequency of the test execution, more test coverage to the development team, quicker releases are a few of them.

In spite of these, there are certain common misconceptions about automation testing. Today, we have decided to clear out these myths from your mind and to make sure that your work flow will get faster and efficient.

So, come on, let’s clear them out.

 

Disbelief about automation testing.

#1: Automation testing is superior to manual testing.

• Deciding which kind is better is, in this case, an irrelevant discussion. The purpose and intention of both the methods is different. First of all, we cannot say that automation testing is testing as such. It’s a process of checking facts. Facts about the system. When we have to tally our knowledge of the system, we perform automation testing, to confirm that understanding with the truth.

Well, Software testing is like an investigation. It gives away new data and knowledge about the respective system. So, as said earlier, it will be rookie mistake to choose only one. For quality results, it is an unavoidable decision to use both methods for a more efficient work ethic.

#2: Doing 100% Automation testing.

• It’s hard to achieve 100% test coverage. Almost impossible. It’s same for the test automation. Though we can increase test coverage by utilizing more data, configurations, covering various operating systems and browsers, 100% is an unachievable target.

Unfortunately, it’s a false equation that more the number of tests, better the quality. Quality of the test is directly dependant on how precise and good your test design is. So, rather than trying to get full coverage, the prime goal of your test should be to concentrate on the more prominent areas of functionality of the product.

#3: Deciding a quick ROI each time.

• When you execute a test automation result, a clear development of the precise regions of interests is important to support operations. This Framework creation can be useful and will give more meaning to test case selection, reporting etc. This is supposed to be considered as a project in itself. Due to this treatment, it requires multiple skilled developers and takes a lot of time.

Even with a fully working framework, making scripts of automated checks takes more time at the start. So, to have a quick result or feedback of the new feature, one should check it manually.

#4: Automated Checks are having higher Error Recognition Rate

• Even if it is true that vendor-supplied or home-made test automation solutions are greatly capable of performing complicated operations; it’s quite impossible that they will ever replace a human tester. A tester’s capabilities are much beyond and precise. She can detect the most invisible anomalies in the application.

Though it is called an ‘automated’ test, an automated check is not automatic until written. It will only perform according to the program written. Hence, the programs are only as good and precise as the person who wrote them. So it should be quite clear to you guys that if any automation program is not written properly, it can directly ignore some prominent errors in the systems. In essence, Automation testing can see if there are any errors in the system but can’t confirm that they are the only errors present. There might be more undetected defects due to bad program writing.

#5: Unit Test Automation is everything we need.

• This is a quite common misconception. But one should get it clear that a unit test only identifies programmer’s errors. It does not show his failures. A much larger element of testing comes ahead when all the components are joined together to form a system. Many of the organizations have their automated checks at the system UI layer.

The process of writing scripts of the automated checks is a complicated task because the functionalities during the development are absolutely volatile. So, don’t spend your precious time on automating a functionality which might not be a part of the final application. It can create problems later.

#6: System UI Automation is the whole ball of wax.

• It’s a mistake to depend solely on automated checks, that to at UI layer. The period of development comes with a number of changes in the UI in various forms like enriched visual design and utility. A fallacious impression about the application’s condition is noted in the checks if a similar change hasn’t taken place in the functionality.

The automation checks in the unit and API layers have a higher execution speed than the UI layer. Hence, the feedback process becomes slow. And because of the exact location of the error is yet unknown, the analysis of the root cause takes much longer. Hence, identifying the layers where the utility of automated tests may become helpful becomes a must.

 

All in all, if you decipher these misconceptions as we did, you will notice a dynamic shift in your working. It will become more fast and efficient.

Understand that automated checks are not something which you do once and you are done. It’s a constant process of updating and monitoring. Make sure you are aware of the limitations of it and have targets which are realistic.

After all, you must not stick only to manual testing and get the most out of automated checks too!

 

For obvious reasons, all you testing geeks indirectly give more preference to Functional testing of your software products. Though it’s true that it makes the product easier to use and responsive, it is not enough. A fine tester always gives equal importance to the Non-Functional testing.

There are so many aspects of non-functional testing which affect the health and performance of your software product in the long run.

Beware! It can ultimately become hazardous to the success of your product.

Out of those various aspects, Compliance testing is one of the fundamental elements of Non-Functional testing and also testing in general. It is the technique that validates if the product is considering the organizational standards or not. So to have a long run with your product, Compliance testing is a must.

Here we discuss the theory in regard to Compliance testing.

What is it?

It is basically the validation or evaluation of your software product with respect to the Regulations and standards that it has to be in boundaries of. An assessment of a sort. An Assessment of whether the product is completing the requirements and specifications that it has to complete. As it confirms the validity of the product, it’s also commonly known as, Conformance testing. As it is a type of non-functional testing, it is quite an auditable test.

Elements

Compliance testing is done for various aspects. As there is a deviation in the defined standards, many elements of the software get affected. Through Compliance testing, those can be assessed.

Check out the list below of those elements.

• Performance
• Functions
• Rigorousness
• Interoperability
• System Behavior

Importance

For performing this test, first we need to understand that why is it important. Our mind should be clear about why do we need it? To answer this question, following points are to be considered.

• Validation of the product about completing all the requirements of the system and the standards.
• Assessment of the documents.
• Authentication of the software design, development, and to again evaluate the product as per the standards, guidelines, specifications and norms.
• To check if the system maintenance is defined as per specified standards and suggest approach.
• Making sure that your product is free from any kind of complaints from regulatory organizations.

Who does it?

Generally, companies do not implement compliance testing. It isn’t considered as compulsory. But the Application of Compliance testing is largely dependent on the company’s management. If the management decides to do the compliance testing, they get a tester from outside or sometimes they just ask the company team to execute it.

Many of the companies also arrange a board of experts in the field to evaluate and authenticate different policies, specifications, regulations and guidelines.

What to test?

The testing is started by the managing board of the company. They first try to completely understand the team considering different regulations, specifications, guidelines, etc.

To make sure the results are best and to assure the quality, all the Standards and guidelines must be clearly stated to the team to avoid any vague steps.

• Scope of requirements
• Call of the software to be developed
• Requirement objectives
• Execution Standards

When to do it?

Whenever one needs to check the comprehensive ability and reliable nature of the software along with assessing how accurate the product is with respect to the requirement specifications.

How to do it?

As stated earlier, the Compliance testing is more like an audit. It does not require any specific method.

It can be done easily like we the other testing processes. Though here is not a specific method to it, we tried to break down the process for you in the following points.

• The initial stage is to get hold of all the precise data regarding all the rules and regulations and other standards and norms.
• Secondly, one needs to document all the collected data in first step properly.
• After that, a clear and precise assessment of all the development phases against the documented standards and norms id required. It should be done to detect and note any deviations or errors in the executed process.
• Next, a report should be made including all the errors to the respective team.
• And finally, a re-verification is required to authenticate the affected areas after the errors have been fixated. It is to make sure the conformance of the standards required.
• This is not a mandatory step but if needed, provision of a certificate can be made for the compliance

To make things easy for you, there are many tools available in the market to execute the compliance testing. You can choose any tool based on your system typ and required standards.

Check them out! After all, anything which saves time and efforts is worth a try. Right?

• MAP2.1 conformance testing tool
• Software Licence Agreement OMS Conformance Tester 4.0
• EtherCAT conformance testing tool
• CANopen Conformance test tool

Advantages

Though Compliance testing is not a compulsory element of the SLTC, but it is recommended to execute it to make sure your software is performing better and overall software compliance.

Still not convinced? Here is a list of some advantages

1. It guarantees proper application of required specifications
2. It authenticates interoperability and portability
3. Authentication of whether the required standards and norms are properly obeyed to.
4. Validation of the workings of the interfaces and functions.
5. Helps in detecting the areas which are yet to be confirmed with those which are not to be confirmed like Semantics and Syntax

Challenges

Yes, Compliance testing does not have a specific methodology. Yes, It can be performed like any other testing. But still, there are challenges. It is not as easy as it seems. But the challenges are not vague. They are known and test the strength of the tester’s abilities.

We have listed some of the challenges for you.

1. Identification of the class of the system and then testing according to the class by going through a suitable methodology. This will promise you the best of results.
2. Specifying specifications into Profiles, Levels, and Modules.
3. Having a complete know-how of different standards, norms and regulations of the system which is to be tested.

Conclusion

In closing, Functional testing of your software product is necessary but it would not be fair to the subscribers of your product if you ignore the Non-functional testing. To have a smooth and uninterrupted experience for a long time, Non-functional testing is as important and Compliance testing assures that the user will be satisfied. So, Test it ASAP!

About VTEST

 

 

Security Testing

Software testing has a massive impact in our lives today. Its indirect and Invisible but it affects our world in a huge way. Its present and growing fast like a bamboo in every sector that the world consists of. Its almost impossible to work efficiently in this digital world, if one is not fully taking benefit of the perks that the digital platform offers. For managing their businesses, many companies already use different web-systems and IT solutions. But every coin has two sides. Though the digitalisation makes it easy to do business like ease of method of Payment and banking related procedures, Stocks, Sales and Purchases of the products etc., it surely has a big danger of the security breaches. That’s why it is important for companies and businesses today to test their securities and tighten the ropes for the dangers to come, Making Security testing one of the most prominent aspects of software maintenance. So, come on, let’s check these basics of security testing.

1. Accessibility

Everywhere in the world, where there is security, there is always a question of accessibility. It should be the primal goal to make sure the accessibility of the security is bound in fair rules and good hands. It’s for your own customers’ good. It includes two main factors, Validation and Authorization. Authorize a person who will access the security and make sure to confirm how much accessibility have you given to the person. To help ensure that the information and data is safe from external as well as internal breaches, conduct the accessibility test. For this test, you need to test the responsibilities and roles of employees in your company. Getting a tester who is good at what He/she does is always preferable. The tester is supposed to generate multiple user accounts, consisting of various roles. Those accounts will then help you know the security status from the Accessibility point. This test can also be consisting of the Default login feature, Captcha test, Password Quality and strength, and other login and signup related tests.

2. Data Protection Level

Your data’s security is dependent on the following factors:

• Data usability and transparency
  It is about how much data on your website your users can see. How much of it is visible.
• Data storage
  This is about the security of your information database.

After testing and noting the vulnerabilities, Proper security testing measures are needed to get assurance about the effectiveness of the storage of the data. If a tester is professional, he /she could surely test the database for every type of critical and prominent data such as passwords, billings, user accounts, etc. There should be end-to-end encryption while the data is being transmitted. Also, the database should have all the important data. Checking the ease of decryption of the encrypted data is also one of the signs of a fine tester.

3. Malicious Script tests

Most of the times, Hackers use SQL and XSS injection to hack a website. They do it by injecting a malicious script into the system of the website allowing them to manipulate and take control of the hacked site. A tester makes sure that your website is safe from these harmful practices. This can be solved by the tester by adding a restriction on the maximum length of characters allowed in the input fields. This avoids the entry of malicious scripts from hackers.

4. Access Points

Human mind can’t work without collaboration. We need other human to survive. And this reflects in our behaviour. One business needs the other business to survive in the market. Hence collaboration becomes one of the prominent factors of this large pit of Businesses. Let’s take an example. If there is a Stock trading app, it has to constantly give access to the users to the latest information and database and to the upcoming users as well. But, as we know, this open access gives way to another big problem known as unwanted breach. Checking the entry points for the app and making sure that the access requests are coming from reliable IPs and applications is what a tester does to avoid these kinds of problems. And if not, The System of your app must have the capacity to cancel and reject those requests.

5. Session Management

Session management test is also another important aspect. A session on the web consists of the response transactions between the browser and your web server. The testing involves various actions such as maximum lifetime of termination, expiry time of the session after a certain idle period, session end time after a user logs out etc.

6. Error Handling

As a user, you must have seen websites going down with errors like Error:404, Error :408 etc. A bit annoying right? Error handling tests are the tests where these kinds of error codes are handled. Here, the tester performs directed actions to ultimately reach such pages and makes sure that the visible page is not having any important piece of data or information. It also involves checking up the Stack traces. Basically, making sure that the hackers will get disappointed!

7. Other Functionalities

Though this is the last “etc.” test, it should not be ignored. Features like Payments, File uploads etc. require vigorous testing as any breach can harm the website, ultimately harming the business. Here tester should be careful on testing the delicacies related to payments like insecure storage, Buffer overflows, Password guessing etc. And Obviously, Malicious files must be restricted.

Well, these are the few tests that we suggest. Obviously, if the tester recommends and suggests other tests for your particular business model, you should do them. Anyway, The more the merrier. Afterall, every business model has its own needs and requirements. So, Start your testing now. Conduct the tests and tighten the security of your software. Because as we all know, one who owns the digital market, owns the market. And to own it, one should take care of the security of his/her Digital persona.

 

 

Building and maintaining a software development company is not an easy task. Even if you are not a big company yet and a start-up with a great software idea, there is much hard work that goes into having a presence in the industry.

At the initial stage, you consider the resources, do the research, and focus on developing the idea into a software. It’s like having a baby. But the difference is that, here, you are creating it with a team of developers and programmers. After this, when you will consider testing the product for giving it a final touch, it is highly probable that you won’t think the testing stage to be important. Here goes the blunder.

The testing stage is as much prominent to the company as the Developing part. It is a common misunderstanding that it is not. As we always say, it is the maintenance that matters. So, while entering into the testing process, consider outsourcing it to a software testing company. Because even if you are a good company in developing apps, there are companies in the world who specialize in testing. They have been a professional in the industry so you might as well ask them to test your app for you.

Now to the main question of this article. What to look for in these companies? What are the qualities to look for while selecting the testing company? Well, don’t worry. We are here for you.

Before discussing the qualities to look for in a software testing company, lets first understand what is software testing?

Software Testing:

To be precise, Software testing is a study of the software steered to deliver information regarding its quality. In simpler words, A check performed on the working of the Software.

It can be done in two ways:

1. Black box software testing: Professional testing by a tester who is qualified for it.
2. White box software testing: Testing by non-technical end-users.

Software Testing Company:

Quite obviously, A Software testing company is an organization built for the sole reason of testing different software and making quality checks.

Now as the basics are clear, below we discuss 15 things to look for while making this important decision of selecting the company.

1. Experience:

The company you are hiring must have some experience in the industry. You can simply check it by going through their portfolio and earlier work. Usability, Delivery of performance, Load balancing capabilities, Design, Marketing, Coding strategies, etc can be the parameters to look for in the portfolio.

2. Qualification:

Don’t go by the name. Even if a company is popular in the industry, does not mean that it will give you a good service. Check the qualification. Even if it is a small company, if it has qualified professional testers, it can be hired. Look for the qualification of the team of testers and not the fame or size of the company.

3. Coding Standards & Framework:

The company should have a standard coding system and a pre-set framework in which the testers work. If not, you surely don’t want to lose or corrupt all your hard work by giving it away in a bad testing environment. An organized coding system and a structured framework are the musts for having good code maintainability.

4. Service:

The services that the company is providing should be confirmed beforehand and mainly the scope of the provisions. It will help your collaboration in the long run as you would beforehand know to what extent to expect from the service provider.

5. Location:

It can be a tough choice if you have to choose between a good foreign company or a moderate domestic company. Be careful while choosing a foreign company as there are some barriers like a different language, cultural and technical differences, etc. Be smart in making this choice.

6. Service Level Agreement:

By definition, it is a contract signed between both the Companies. The client and the provider. SLAs, as they are called in the industry, are the defining factor of the expected output. Be alert while signing it and make sure you both know all the aspects of the deal and agree to it completely.

Some key pointers that are a must in an SLA:

• Business know-how
• Timelines of reporting
• Knowledge transfer
• Process compliance
• Project management
• Quality measures

7. Flexibility:

The company’s approach towards the deal and then work should be flexible. If any occurrence happens which suggests some change or modulation in the contract then the company is supposed to be open for it. Avoid working with people who are rigid and won’t change the policy under any circumstance as anything unpredictable can happen. The verifying factors at this point are Ease of exit, , Capabilities, etc.

8. Quality Improvement:

It is not wrong if and when you expect from the testing company that the product you are giving to them should come out as better than before. It is the provider’s, and yes, simultaneously your job to improve the quality of the product at the end of the process.

9. Intellectual Property Protection:

Intellectual Property Protection AKA IP is a term used to describe the intangible property used commercially. Ideas, designs, artistic work, Inventions, and symbols, etc. Make sure to protect your IP while dealing with another testing company.

10. Security:

Continuing with the earlier point, the security of a company is important as the software must be having al the sensitive data about the company. So, decision making should also consider this factor of security. The provider should provide the expected security to the software.

11. Infrastructure:

It will make no sense if the company you are hiring for testing is not having the right type of equipment that supports your product. Therefore, you should confirm that the company is having a well-settled infrastructure that matches your product’s compatibility. It must be having all the tools and techniques to run the test. The factors which are to be considered are hardware, backend database systems, platforms, software, operating system, testing tools, etc.

12. Management Style:

The managerial approach of both the companies must match. To help establish good communication, the language used and the ethics of the companies should be in line with each other.

13. Responsibility and Accountability:

No one wants to work with someone irresponsible and unaccountable. Punctuality, Accountability are some of the primary factors to consider while choosing the company. If any blunder happens, the respective people should take responsibility for it.

14. Costing:

If all the above-mentioned things go fine, consider deciding the actual cost of working with the company. The provider who is giving you the maximum ROI should be chosen. The aspects on which the ROI is to decide are overall value addition, quality, and timely delivery.

15. Documentation:

When hiring a software testing company, you must ensure that the company is having all the required documentation standards which are needed. Easy access to the documents and a well-documented deal is the base of a good collaboration. Test plans, scripts, test scenarios, and test results are some of the documents you need to be proper.

Conclusion

Even if you work in a big company or you are a part of a startup, consider outsourcing the testing to a sensible company as it will save you a lot of time and effort. And more importantly, it will be less costly. It also encourages you to have concentrated on your core work, that is, the development.

So, if you consider all these factors and more, you won’t have any trouble later. It is the need of the hour to test any software which exists today but at the same time, the people and companies who are testing also need to be verified. And here we come in to guide you through this verification and selection process. So, Trust the testers and outsource it!