Web applications testing techniques: a systematic mapping study

Abstract

Due to the importance of web application testing techniques for detecting faults and assessing quality attributes, many research papers were published in this field. For this reason, it became essential to analyse, classify and summarise the research in the field. To achieve this goal, this research conducted a systematic mapping study on 98 research papers in the field of web applications testing published between 2008 and 2021. The results showed that the most commonly used web applications testing techniques in literature are model-based testing and security testing. Besides, the most commonly used models in model-based testing are finite-state machines. The most targeted vulnerability in security testing is SQL injection. Test automation is the most targeted testing goal in both model-based and security testing. For other web applications testing techniques, the main goals of testing were test automation, test coverage, and assessing security quality attributes.