Risk-based testing in Testing Fundamentals - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What is Risk-based testing?

Risk-based testing is a testing approach where tests are prioritized based on the risk of failure and its impact. It focuses on testing the most important and risky parts of the software first.

beginner

Why do we use risk-based testing?

We use risk-based testing to make the best use of limited testing time and resources by focusing on areas that could cause the most harm if they fail.

beginner

Name two key factors considered in risk-based testing.

The two key factors are:

• Likelihood of failure (how likely a problem is)
• Impact of failure (how bad the problem would be)

beginner

How does risk-based testing help in real-life projects?

It helps teams focus on testing the most critical features first, reducing the chance of serious bugs reaching users and saving time by not testing low-risk areas extensively.

beginner

What is a simple example of risk-based testing?

Imagine testing a banking app: testing money transfer features is high risk because errors can cause big losses, so these get tested first. Features like changing the app theme are low risk and tested later.

What does risk-based testing prioritize?

A Testing features with the highest risk first

B Testing features in alphabetical order

C Testing only the new features

D Testing features randomly

Risk-based testing focuses on testing the parts of the software that have the highest risk of failure and impact.

Which two factors are used to assess risk in risk-based testing?

A Number of users and code size

B Cost and time

C Likelihood of failure and impact of failure

D Test coverage and test speed

Risk is assessed by how likely a failure is and how bad the failure would be.

Why is risk-based testing useful when time is limited?

A It tests everything equally

B It focuses on the most important risks first

C It skips testing completely

D It tests only the easiest features

Risk-based testing helps use limited time wisely by focusing on the most risky parts first.

In risk-based testing, what happens to low-risk features?

A They are tested more than high-risk features

B They are tested first

C They are ignored completely

D They are tested last or less thoroughly

Low-risk features are tested later or with less effort to save resources.

Which of these is an example of a high-risk feature in a shopping app?

A Adding items to the shopping cart

B Reading the terms and conditions

C Viewing the help page

D Changing the app background color

Adding items to the cart is high risk because errors here affect purchases and revenue.

Explain what risk-based testing is and why it is important.

Think about how you decide what to test first when you have limited time.

Describe how you would decide which features to test first using risk-based testing.

Consider what could go wrong and how bad it would be.

Practice

1. What is the main goal of risk-based testing in software testing?

easy

A. To avoid testing parts that are easy to test

B. To test all parts of the software equally

C. To focus testing on the most important and risky parts first

D. To test only the user interface

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of risk-based testing

   Risk-based testing aims to prioritize testing efforts on areas with the highest risk to save time and improve effectiveness.

2. Step 2: Compare options with this purpose

   To focus testing on the most important and risky parts first matches this goal by focusing on important and risky parts first, while others do not.

3. Final Answer:

   To focus testing on the most important and risky parts first -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Risk-based testing = Focus on risky parts first [OK]

Hint: Risk-based testing targets risky parts first [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking all parts are tested equally
• Believing risk-based testing ignores important parts
• Confusing risk-based testing with UI-only testing

2. Which of the following is the correct way to prioritize tests in risk-based testing?

easy

A. By combining the impact and likelihood of potential problems

B. By testing the easiest features first

C. By testing features in alphabetical order

D. By testing only the newest features

Solution

1. Step 1: Recall how risk is calculated in testing

   Risk is usually calculated by combining the impact of a problem and how likely it is to happen.

2. Step 2: Match this with the options

   By combining the impact and likelihood of potential problems correctly states this combination, while others focus on unrelated criteria.

3. Final Answer:

   By combining the impact and likelihood of potential problems -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Risk = Impact x Likelihood [OK]

Hint: Prioritize tests by impact and likelihood [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Prioritizing by ease or alphabetical order
• Ignoring likelihood of problems
• Testing only new features without risk analysis

3. Consider this simplified risk table for features:

Feature A: Impact=5, Likelihood=4
Feature B: Impact=3, Likelihood=6
Feature C: Impact=4, Likelihood=2

Which feature should be tested first based on risk?

medium

A. Feature B

B. Feature A

C. Feature C

D. All features equally

Solution

1. Step 1: Calculate risk for each feature

   Risk = Impact x Likelihood.
   Feature A: 5 x 4 = 20
   Feature B: 3 x 6 = 18
   Feature C: 4 x 2 = 8

2. Step 2: Identify highest risk

   Feature A has the highest risk score (20), so it should be tested first.

3. Final Answer:

   Feature A -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Highest risk = Feature A (20) [OK]

Hint: Multiply impact and likelihood to find highest risk [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Choosing feature with highest likelihood only
• Ignoring impact in calculation
• Testing all features equally without prioritization

4. A tester wrote this pseudocode to select features to test based on risk:

features = [{"name": "A", "impact": 5, "likelihood": 4},
            {"name": "B", "impact": 3, "likelihood": 6}]

for feature in features:
    risk = feature["impact"] + feature["likelihood"]
    if risk > 8:
        print(feature["name"])

What is wrong with this code for risk-based testing?

medium

A. Risk should be calculated by multiplying impact and likelihood, not adding

B. The loop should use feature.name instead of feature["name"]

C. The risk threshold should be less than 8, not greater

D. The features list should be sorted before looping

Solution

1. Step 1: Review risk calculation method

   Risk-based testing calculates risk by multiplying impact and likelihood, not adding them.

2. Step 2: Identify error in code

   The code adds impact and likelihood, which is incorrect for risk calculation.

3. Final Answer:

   Risk should be calculated by multiplying impact and likelihood, not adding -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Risk = Impact x Likelihood, not sum [OK]

Hint: Risk = impact x likelihood, not sum [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Adding instead of multiplying impact and likelihood
• Confusing dictionary access syntax
• Assuming sorting is required before risk check

5. You have three features with these risk scores:

Feature X: 12
Feature Y: 20
Feature Z: 20

Due to limited time, you can only test two features. Which is the best risk-based testing approach?

hard

A. Test Feature X and Feature Y because X has the lowest risk

B. Test all three features equally

C. Test Feature X and Feature Z because Z is newer

D. Test Feature Y and Feature Z because they have the highest risk

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify features with highest risk

   Feature Y and Feature Z both have the highest risk score of 20.

2. Step 2: Prioritize testing based on risk and time limit

   Since only two can be tested, choose the two with highest risk to maximize risk coverage.

3. Final Answer:

   Test Feature Y and Feature Z because they have the highest risk -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Test highest risk features first [OK]

Hint: Pick features with highest risk scores first [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Testing lower risk features first
• Ignoring risk scores when time is limited
• Trying to test all features equally despite limits