Are open-source test automation tools reliable for banking systems?

Banking systems

Banks are steadily adopting open-source test automation tools. Let us explore why banks rely on open-source test automation tools. Banks in less than half a decade have witnessed growth in technology and digital advancement. Open-source test automation tools offer banks a competitive advantage to remain updated with technological development.

It helps banks in cost reductions, stability, easy accessibility, training testers, testing in-house developed applications, and more. Because of its benefits and advantages, open-source test automation tools have evolved as an industry standard and became a necessity for banks and financial industry. It allows people working and evaluating the framework in large groups to identify errors, flaws, and technical glitches with ease.

The current age banking systems

Banking systems in the current times see a greater digital acceleration. The banks and financial institutions confronted the most fastidious situation and came out unharmed. The banking system is healthier and stronger in handling adverse scenarios after dealing with a global pandemic. Banks and financial industry have seen significant growth in technologies in recent times. Banks now follow the latest open banking trend, and there is unrestricted growth globally.

As per a recent report in Statista, the number of open banking users worldwide is expected to grow at an average annual rate of nearly 50% between 2020 and 2024, with the European market being the largest. As the graph shows, in 2020, Europe counted approximately 12.2 million open banking users. This figure is expected to reach 63.8 million by 2024. As of 2020, 24.7 million individuals worldwide used open banking services, a number that is forecast to reach 132.2 million by 2024. This growth in technology requires steadfast system validation to ensure that banks continue to perform and innovate.

The benefits of open-source test automation tools

To substantiate the question, “are open-source test automation tools reliable for banking systems” I will state a few benefits of open-source test automation tools in this article. Let us go through the reasons one by one to understand why open-source test automation is reliable for banking systems.

  • Better support and collaboration – There are vast fields of information available on the internet that testers can consult to overcome obstacles. Open-source framework enriches online communities, which allow the team from different locations to interact and collaborate with each other via a centralized server. There is a constant flow of information transfer within the community without any downloads and uploads.
  • Cost-efficient – The open-source test automation platform has low licensing costs and minimal hardware needs. The testing components are easily reused and have greater scalability, making the task of managing the performance and load testing easy. Testers can adjust total cloud storage based on the testing requirements making it flexible for organizations to opt for a pricing plan. All mentioned above help reduce the cost of using an open-source test automation framework.
  • Prompt testing – Open-source tools hasten the test cycles making it much shorter than the cycles run with traditional tools. Setup and tool deployment are prompt without the need of installing. The productivity remains unaffected as test updates are tracked in real-time. It reduces the overall time to market making the organization to focus on the quality and deliverables.
  • Overall quality – Several users and developers come together to ensure the quality and security of the open-source platform. The team comprises multiple developers across the globe who are among the best in innovating, improving, and enhancing the quality of the open-source test automation platform so that the users get a high-quality test automation package.
  • Easy to customize – The open-source test automation software comes with a customizable option to suit the specific requirements of the testing department. The codes are easily editable and offer smooth functionality.
  • Virtualization – Virtualization reduces the cost by easily sharing resources and making the best use of their respective skills. Virtualization ensures that testing is more efficient and user-friendly.
  • No restrictions – Open-source test automation platforms allow the organization to work with skilled teams and individuals. Users can fast track the decision-making process with complete control of the execution process. As the highly competent users and developers form a global community, there is uninterrupted support without restrictions.

Open-source test automation tools reform the banking systems

The banking and financial industry is undergoing a massive shift with the appearance of agile and DevOps practices. The importance of software Quality Assurance has increased to ensure the reliability and stability of banking software. Banking systems must be updated with regulatory and functionality changes frequently. Testing the applications from the start will only increase the time to market.

To eliminate the delays, banks and financial institutions are embracing DevOps practices. They are speeding up frequent iteration by establishing CI/CD pipelines and releasing small segments of applications in batches. QA teams are enabling early testing by taking the shift-left approach. Organizations are adopting the DevOps methodology that combines the development and testing teams to focus on a result-oriented QA process. The development team works in a cohesive manner where the development teams create and run unit tests while the test teams validate these at the API and UI layers.

As application development adapts the cloud native technologies, they are built with service packages and deployed as microservices. Open-source test automation tools speed up the testing process of financial and banking applications while reducing cost, enhancing stability, and offering easy accessibility. Banking applications are now managed on cloud infrastructure through DevOps processes and continuous delivery workflows making it accessible, flexible, and scalable.

The teams can ensure high software stability as test automation helps to achieve a larger test coverage and higher level of regression testing. Teams are also focusing on preventing and predicting application performance issues as a result organizations are replacing performance testing techniques with performance engineering.

Different types of open-source testing tools

To test the different types of banking applications and interfaces, the organizations must select the testing tools. The selection of testing tools must be based upon the two functional or non-functional testing aspects. The areas included in functional testing are Web UI, mobile app UI, and API validation, whereas the non-functional test areas include performance, reliability, scalability, and accessibility. The following are the types of open-source test automation tools that can help us to validate the banking software.

  • BDD based test automation tools

Testers or business analysts can create test cases in uncomplicated text language using BDD or Behaviour Driven Development framework. This software development approach allows even non-technical team members to understand the project details.

  • API automation testing tools

Teams are adopting agile and DevOps methodologies and shift-left testing approach that shortens the release cycles. It is imperative to execute API testing as it bridges the differences between unit and GUI layer testing.

  • Mobile test automation tools

The open-source test automation framework can help to automate workflows for native, hybrid and web apps. Many tools offer cross-platform support and JIRA integration.  Mobile test automation tools can automate workflows of iOS, Android, and Windows apps and offer support for multiple programming languages like Java, Ruby, Python, PHP, JavaScript, and C#.

  • Performance testing tools

Performance testing tools are intended for load testing of web applications. Many such tools are open-source test automation tools offering load and performance testing for cloud-native applications, APIs and microservices. A few performance testing tools allow writing test cases in ES6 JavaScript, while other tools offer built-in support for HTTP/1.1, HTTP/2 and Web Socket protocols. Some open-source test automations tools can be introduced into automation pipelines in Jenkins, GitLab, Azure DevOps, CircleCI and other CI/CD tools for performance regression testing.

  • Reliability and stability testing tools

These open-source test automation tools offer services on the cloud for generating various kinds of failures, detecting abnormal conditions, and testing the ability to endure the adversities. The main goal of focus of reliability and stability testing tools are to keep the cloud applications safe, secure with high reliability and stability.

  • Accessibility testing tools

Open-source accessibility testing tools offer thorough application testing to ensure that even the people with disabilities or specially challenged, of all age groups and different races, can use the applications without any issues or disruption. However, application testing must remain compliant with accessibility standards like WCAG 2.1 level AA and AAA, Section 508, ADA and EN 301.

Conclusion

Banking in current times is evolving fast. If it must keep up with the pace of fast changing technology landscape, the banking QA software QA must be ready to adopt newer techniques and tool sets. Banking and financial applications are the most versatile. Each application has functionalities only specific to the requirements, hence, to maintain the quality of the applications it must follow the e2e testing process. This article highlights the different open-source test automation tools and how banks can rely on them for their software testing.

QA Transformation is key to Digital Readiness

QA transformation is key to Digital Readiness

The importance of QA is increasing steadily with the growth in digitalization, with 40% of the financial sectors have already adopted DevOps. As now more and more companies are embracing agile methodology and DevOps, they are meeting the growing demands for the fastest product delivery incorporated with continuous feedback. There is now a greater dependency on continuous testing with an increasing need for faster product delivery.

In agile methodology, the testing team is a part of a core development team, which nudges them to be ready for any subsequent changes in software and develop it accordingly. Software testing has been evolving, from manual testing to automation, open-source frameworks, agile, DevOps, Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI / CD). With a continuously evolving approach to testing, the development team enables faster deployment of software reducing the time-to-market.

What is QA transformation?

QA transformation means focusing on user experience while ensuring the information security of the application. Meeting customers’ expectations, needs and focusing on customer satisfaction are the key parameters that drive QA transformation.

For example – In a pandemic situation, such as the current COVID-19, there has been a surge of new applications to address customer needs. Not restricting just to quantity of digital products, these applications focus on quality as well as variety, spanning across different sectors namely banking and financial sectors, GPS tracker and COVID19 cases tracker, video calling and teleconference platform, online delivery of grocery, food, and medicine delivery. With continuous feedback and integration, these apps were released faster in the market than we could anticipate.

Companies adapting to automation, open-source frameworks, agile, DevOps, Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI / CD) helped them in reducing the time-to-market. As software testing is quickly emerging, it relies heavily on codeless test automation, AI/ ML, RPA, and more. Since QA practice evolved with these methodologies, it facilitated the growth, flexibility, scalability, and sustainability of the digital platform.  

How important is a good QA practice?

A well-structured QA program follows complete quality metrics to facilitate digital transformation, hence, ensuring the quality of the software becomes essential. Based on customer requirements companies determine their QA resources their respective roles to accomplish the digital transformation goals.

QA plays a crucial role in digital transformation. QA helps in,

  • Protecting brand image 

A good QA practice is to consider user experience across multiple digital platforms. This includes improving user access reducing response time and improving consistency in brand perception.

  • Enhancing product quality

The end-users need a high-quality product for glitch-free performance. The right QA practice eliminates performance bottlenecks and enhances the quality of products to ensure user satisfaction.

  • Ensuring User Satisfaction

Attaining complete coverage of user requirements and expectations by designing and automating test cases. Implementing solutions and accumulating test data for test automation and ensuring customer experience. 

Benefits of QA in Digital Transformation

As automation, open-source frameworks, agile, DevOps, Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI / CD), methodologies are growing more than ever before, these are becoming an integral part of the Software Development Lifecycle. Following are some of the benefits that the development team would experience following the methodologies.

  • Ensure Application Security

Continuous system integration exposes an application to many bugs and defects. Hence, the developers and testers follow definite processes and methodologies to continuously improve the quality of the application throughout the QA transformation process.

Collecting customer-sensitive data ensures application security by reducing the chance of exposure to risks. A quality assurance plan allows companies to identify the risks and build software that continues to perform even during a crisis.

The customers’ sensitive information and data can be misused, due to improper QA plans and prevailing technical glitches in software, which leads to loss of market share and customer reputation.

To avoid these unforeseen scenarios, organizations are investing in digitalization and building QA strategies, which is expected to play a crucial role in ensuring business growth and sustenance.

  • QA Transformation improves user experience

Over the years, companies are striving to improve customer experience and gain a competitive edge in the market with the emergence of new trends and technologies like Big Data, Cloud services, and Mobility services. The technologies that are driving digital transformation are unlikely to provide results without appropriate digital assurance and quality metrics.

Following a proper quality transformation strategy and planning prepares organizations to adopt digitalization promptly, as with every innovation your platform, process and system remain ready to adapt to frequent changes saving you time, money, and effort.

A prior quality assurance planning and testing ensure that your applications are compatible across all devices and browsers and offer seamless customer experience in a real-time user environment.

Interesting here, as it may seem, the QA or testing teams are leveraging test automation tools for repeated tests across devices and operating systems to ensure flawless integration, performance, and user acceptance.

  • QA Transformation allows you to adopt new technologies

As enterprises adapt to new technologies, it brings along multiple challenges such as system integration with existing, being familiar with the new technology with work culture, training, development requirements, and more. The QA transformation allows you to measure, manage and integrate processes to deliver financial and timely benefits consistently.

Organizations build their own Testing Center of Excellence (TCoE) to adopt robust processes and get test results through the test transformation process. Various teams build quality metrics and assessment models to measure the impact of the newly adopted technology on the overall transformation process.

Quality Assurance impact on Digital Transformation Initiatives

The DevOps enables continuous delivery, continuous deployment, and continuous integration. Since testing is an integral and inseparable part of DevOps, some of the test engineers have coined it as, “DevTestOps”. The functional testers are now adapting to the more agile framework and intensively performing A/B testing, NFC testing, mobile testing (functional and automated), system integration, data testing and more.

Agile Awareness in QA Transformation

Companies’ leap in adapting to the agile methodology has made the QA teams in companies struggle with the implementation of the agile development model and the end-to-end transformation to the agile framework.

An agile QA should be open to change and adoption of glitch-free techniques. Following a few steps will allow a smooth transition from traditional to agile QA. QA is an integral part of the development process, and it needs to be considered as one. QA does not just only focus on improving the quality of the application, it reduces the risk factor redefines and transforms the process.

Steps for successful QA transformation

  • The QA team needs to be trained in agile methodology so that they can be more receptive to digital changes.
  • Before rolling out the transition to agile, a few pilot projects need to be introduced. This will allow you to build agile competency and lower the risk of transition.
  • Since traditional QA is very different from the agile methodology, which follows an iterative approach and an adaptive model, developers and testers should take up more ownership in terms of responsibilities.
  • The QA team are expected to be more competent to write any kind of code. Conventional methods and processes are no longer applicable if you are looking for a smooth transition to agile QA.
  • Test automation is a key feature of testing, developing, and deploying the software. The developers and testers should work in perfect coordination until the automation results are achieved.

Conclusion –

At Yethi, our team is driven by in-depth knowledge of the domain and technology systems support, coupled with the requisite skill set. We are a team of quality assurance professionals focused on the BFSI industry. We have helped many organizations globally in ensuring the quality of their applications while reducing their turnaround time, time-to-market.

Yethi’s flagship 6th generation codeless test automation tool – Tenjin is an intuitive automated test suite, which is built with features for seamless system integration and flawless performance. With agile, granular, and multi-system test capabilities, Tenjin can interact with multiple applications through APIs.

Role of Test Automation in DevOps

Test Automation in DevOps

DevOps is a multidisciplinary approach that creates an advanced development environment by combining development, IT operations, modern practices, and tools. When test automation is carried out along the DevOps pipeline it aids in faster deployment of the software. DevOps supports continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD), allowing the testing to be conducted earlier in the software development cycle. When testing is conducted earlier, it offers a much larger scope to improve the product quality by rectifying the errors/bugs in the earlier stage, which would otherwise amplify and cause severe issues if left unidentified earlier.

The success of the DevOps lifecycle depends on test automation which ensures that the developed software quality is top-notch. Continuous testing is a critical part of the DevOps cycle that lowers the operational and infrastructural risk and facilitates greater quality and improved speed, reduced cost, and increased accuracy. Hence, the success/failure of the end-product depends on developing it in a DevOps environment and implementing automation testing along the pipeline.

 Test Automation and DevOps

DevOps is the modern-day software development approach that can achieve the desired speed and agility by implementing test automation. Automation testing plays a pivotal role as it supports the dynamic CI/CD pipeline of the DevOps cycle. DevOps is a cultural shift that organizations are embracing for better and faster deployment, and test automation improves the quality with nearly 100% accuracy.

By implementing test automation, DevOps practice can benefit from the following:

  • Increases the process reliability
  • Test automation can detect the bugs earlier, hence, making the product deployment easier and quicker
  • The error rate is considerably reduced
  • Simplifies the process and promotes accurate and faster test case execution

Fig – DevOps Lifecycle

In the DevOps cycle, the test automation process has taken a shift-left approach, wherein testing is performed from the beginning of the software development cycle, reducing the length of delivery time while improving the quality of the release. This approach is purely focused on improving the quality to offer a great user experience, which will eventually improve the brand value and ROI.

How does the Automation Testing Process improve the previous cases?

The automation Testing process reduces the SDLC life cycles and follows the points mentioned below to improve the previous cases –

  • Improves speed
  • Offers fast feedback
  • Provide reliable results
  • Efficient result
  • Minimizes time and cost
  • Minimal human intervention

What role does Automation Testing play in DevOps?

Test Automation plays a crucial role in the following situations:

  • Incorporating test automation in DevOps, manual testing is minimized considerably as the automation processes take over. As the process is automated, the obvious human errors can be reduced and proven to be successful for repeated executions and regression tests.
  • It comparatively becomes easier to check an application after each step than to compare it at the end of the deployment. It makes it easier to correct each step than finding bugs after completing the software.
  • As advanced coding knowledge may be required for conducting testing at the API level, automation testing handles this task with ease as the process is automated and does not demand any coding knowledge. However, coding may be required only to set the process.
  • To correct the test cases in an estimated time limit and remove the errors, developers must change the code multiple times. The automation testing process offers an easy way to overcome these problems.

How to make test automation successful in DevOps

Here are a few points to consider yielding the best results from using test automation in DevOps:

Implementing testing simultaneous to the development

In the DevOps cycle operating on a continuous release approach, testing is carried out simultaneously to the development. By following this approach, issues can be fixed early and efficiently. This is an efficient way to reduce cost and improve time-to-market with improved quality.

Flexible test scripts

As the DevOps process consists of continuous integration, it is important to create flexible test scripts of higher quality to support the continuous integration process. The flexible scripts will support regression tests to ensure high accuracy and performance.

Choosing the right automation tool

It is important to choose the right test automation tool that will support the DevOps process efficiently. Make sure to use the tool that possesses all the capabilities that will suit your requirements.

Maintaining single test flow

It is recommended to test one thing at a time. Single flow testing will reduce the process complexity and makes it easier to find out the faults. Running multiple tests at a time can be a cumbersome process.

Building reusable test cases

Building reusable test cases will considerably reduce the time, cost, and hassle being taken to create a new test case. Organizations have reported that they have saved immense time and cost by creating reusable test cases.

Codeless test automation

Codeless test automation is the ideal choice for testing in a DevOps environment as it allows easy and faster product release across the complex CI/CD pipeline. Codeless test automation helps achieve the business objective by improving quality while reducing cost and risk.

Yethi’s test automation solution for banks and financial institutions

DevOps is the trend in the software development process banking and financial software processes are no different. To support the complex banking/finance software and ensure the developed software system is of high quality, Yethi offers a world-class test automation solution. Its test automation platform, Tenjin, is a 5th generation tool with robotic UI plug and play capabilities that can automatically learn and relearn to give higher testing accuracy.

Tenjin will help address the functional and non-functional issues in the complex banking/financial software system. With its half a million-test case repository, Tenjin can significantly help reduce time, effort, and money.