ISTQB CTFL sample questions with answers

ISTQB CTFL sample questions

ISTQB Certified Tester Foundation Level (CTFL) v4.0, ISTQB (International Software Testing Qualifications Board).

1. Question 1

   Domain: Fundamentals of Testing

   The test cases for a payroll component are designed and executed by testers from the organization's central test team, which is separate from the development team that wrote the component.

   Which level of independence of testing does this represent?

   1. No independence
   2. Some independence
   3. High independence
   4. Very high independence
   Show the answer

   Answer: C. High independence

   The syllabus describes testers from outside the author's team but within the organization as high independence. Very high independence is tempting, but it is reserved for testers from outside the organization; peers from the same team would give only some independence.

   Checked against: https://glossary.istqb.org/en_US/term/independence-of-testing

2. Question 2

   Domain: Fundamentals of Testing

   A team has executed the same set of regression test cases for two years without changing them. The tests still pass, yet customers keep reporting new failures in the areas they cover.

   Which testing principle does this illustrate?

   1. Defects cluster together
   2. Tests wear out
   3. Exhaustive testing is impossible
   4. Absence-of-defects fallacy
   Show the answer

   Answer: B. Tests wear out

   'Tests wear out' states that repeating the same tests becomes increasingly ineffective at finding new defects, so tests and test data may need to be modified or new tests written. Exhaustive testing is impossible is true but does not explain why an unchanged suite gradually stops finding defects.

   Checked against: https://istqb.org/certifications/certified-tester-foundation-level-ctfl-v4-0/

3. Question 3

   Domain: Testing Throughout the Software Development Lifecycle

   What is a typical impact of a sequential development model on testing?

   1. Dynamic testing is performed at every test level from the very first phase, because working code exists early
   2. Test analysis and test design are postponed until the code is complete, so that the tests match the implementation
   3. Testing relies mainly on experience-based techniques with minimal documentation
   4. Testers review requirements and design tests early, but dynamic testing usually cannot start until later phases
   Show the answer

   Answer: D. Testers review requirements and design tests early, but dynamic testing usually cannot start until later phases

   In sequential models testers typically participate in requirement reviews, test analysis and test design in the initial phases, while executable code is created later, so dynamic testing cannot usually be performed early. Minimal documentation with experience-based techniques is characteristic of Agile development, not of sequential models.

   Checked against: https://istqb.org/certifications/certified-tester-foundation-level-ctfl-v4-0/

4. Question 4

   Domain: Testing Throughout the Software Development Lifecycle

   An organization is moving a product team from a sequential model to Agile development with two-week iterations.

   How is testing typically adapted in the Agile context?

   1. Lightweight documentation, extensive test automation, and manual testing based largely on experience-based techniques
   2. Detailed test documentation is completed for the whole product before the first iteration starts, as in sequential models
   3. Regression testing is reduced, because each iteration adds only a small amount of change
   4. Testing is concentrated in a hardening phase at the end of the release
   Show the answer

   Answer: A. Lightweight documentation, extensive test automation, and manual testing based largely on experience-based techniques

   The syllabus notes that Agile development assumes change, favors lightweight documentation and extensive test automation, and that much manual testing uses experience-based techniques. Reducing regression testing is the tempting error: frequent delivery actually requires fast feedback and extensive regression testing.

   Checked against: https://istqb.org/certifications/certified-tester-foundation-level-ctfl-v4-0/

5. Question 5

   Domain: Static Testing

   Which review type is the most formal, has finding the maximum number of anomalies as its main objective, and collects metrics to improve the SDLC and the review process?

   1. Walkthrough
   2. Inspection
   3. Technical review
   4. Informal review
   Show the answer

   Answer: B. Inspection

   Inspections follow the complete generic review process, aim mainly to find the maximum number of anomalies, and collect metrics that are used to improve the SDLC, including the inspection process itself. A technical review is led by a moderator and mainly aims to gain consensus and make decisions on a technical problem.

   Checked against: https://glossary.istqb.org/en_US/term/inspection

6. Question 6

   Domain: Test Analysis and Design

   In an ATDD workshop, the team reviews the test cases derived from a user story's acceptance criteria.

   Which statement about these test cases is correct?

   1. They should cover all characteristics of the user story and should not go beyond it
   2. They should be written after the user story has been implemented, so they match the code
   3. They may be created only by the testers in the team
   4. Each characteristic should be described by at least two test cases for redundancy
   Show the answer

   Answer: A. They should cover all characteristics of the user story and should not go beyond it

   In ATDD, test cases must cover all the characteristics of the user story and should not go beyond it, and no two test cases should describe the same characteristic. They are created before implementation by team members with different perspectives, such as customers, developers and testers.

   Checked against: https://glossary.istqb.org/en_US/term/acceptance-test-driven-development

7. Question 7

   Domain: Test Analysis and Design

   A field accepts whole numbers from 1 to 100 inclusive; all other whole numbers are rejected.

   Which values are the coverage items for 2-value boundary value analysis?

   1. 1, 100
   2. 1, 50, 100
   3. 0, 1, 2, 99, 100, 101
   4. 0, 1, 100, 101
   Show the answer

   Answer: D. 0, 1, 100, 101

   In 2-value BVA each boundary value and its closest neighbor in the adjacent partition are coverage items, giving 0 and 1 at the lower boundary and 100 and 101 at the upper boundary. The set that includes 2 and 99 is the tempting choice, but those extra values come from 3-value BVA.

   Checked against: https://glossary.istqb.org/en_US/term/boundary-value-analysis

8. Question 8

   Domain: Managing the Test Activities

   Product risk analysis rates a payment module as having a high risk of security vulnerabilities, and the release date cannot move.

   Which approach best mitigates this product risk by testing?

   1. Accept the risk, because its likelihood is below 1 and so it might never actually occur
   2. Security testing with suitable techniques and coverage, by skilled testers with appropriate independence
   3. Reduce regression testing of the payment module, to free up time for testing the newly added features instead
   4. Rely on beta testers to report any security vulnerabilities they find after the release
   Show the answer

   Answer: B. Security testing with suitable techniques and coverage, by skilled testers with appropriate independence

   Mitigation actions by testing include selecting testers with the right experience and skills, applying an appropriate level of independence, applying appropriate test types, techniques and coverage, and performing reviews, static analysis and dynamic testing. Accepting a high-rated risk simply because its likelihood is below 1 is not a reason at all: every risk has a likelihood below 1.

   Checked against: https://glossary.istqb.org/en_US/term/risk-mitigation

9. Question 9

   Domain: Managing the Test Activities

   In a previous, similar project, the ratio of development effort to test effort was 3:2. The development effort for the current project is estimated at 900 person-days.

   Using estimation based on ratios, what is the estimated test effort?

   1. 300 person-days
   2. 450 person-days
   3. 600 person-days
   4. 1,350 person-days
   Show the answer

   Answer: C. 600 person-days

   Estimation based on ratios applies a standard ratio from comparable past projects: test effort = 900 × 2 / 3 = 600 person-days. 1,350 is the result of applying the ratio the wrong way round (900 × 3 / 2).

   Checked against: https://glossary.istqb.org/en_US/term/test-estimation

10. Question 10

    Domain: Tool Support for Testing

    A team adopts a tool that reads a model of the system's behavior and generates test cases, test data and test procedures from it.

    Which category of test tool is this?

    1. Test design and test implementation tools
    2. Test execution and test coverage tools
    3. Non-functional testing tools
    4. Tools supporting scalability and deployment standardization
    Show the answer

    Answer: A. Test design and test implementation tools

    Test design and test implementation tools facilitate the generation of test cases, test data and test procedures. Test execution tools could later run the generated procedures, but generating them is the defining capability here.

    Checked against: https://istqb.org/certifications/certified-tester-foundation-level-ctfl-v4-0/