One of the problems QA has is deciding how much proof is enough.
Proofs are expensive and time consuming to generate. Even with new tools saving everything in video and screen shots, there is still a need to confirm that the correct items appear, and they can be found later. This is particularly true in Projects with regulatory requirements. AI can certainly help with this and reduce a lot of the manual work. But we still need to set guidelines about how long, and where the proofs are kept. They must also be secured from unauthorized access and manipulation. Any mistrusted proof will cause issues at audit time. Lastly, they must be able to be found when required.
Proofs are also helpful when we come to testing the new version of the software. Detailed actual results can not only pinpoint unexpected and detrimental changes in the new version but they can also guide other testing that may need to be done.
Two questions arise:
1. Are proofs necessary – Yes.
2. How long should they be kept – that depends on the industry and requirements but (as should be the case for all documentation) a policy for document retention needs to be written, filed, and applied.
Either way we do not keep everything for ever.
Proofs are a crucial part of software testing and will be called upon in the future as software testing faces scrutiny in how they tested in the event of problems in production.
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