# [[Flirting with Risk - TestCon 2024]] ## Details Conference:: "[[TestCon Europe 2024]]" Date:: [[2024-10-24]] Length:: 45 minutes  ## Abstract We often follow a script when we test for reliability: a series of steps with a binary outcome. Either the SLO is met (a pass), or it is exceeded (a fail). On its own, this type of verification is insufficient when testing real systems. Instead, we need a more dynamic approach that allows for a larger range of outcomes. Flirtation is more than just following a script. Flirtation is a conversation, a probing of the integrity of the rules of the game while playing it. When we flirt, we are observant, responsive, and open to possibilities. Good flirtation, like good testing, requires walking the line between safety and risk, ease and tension, consent and ambiguity. In this talk we discuss how practices like chaos engineering, fault injection, fuzzing, and observability help us explore the limits of a system and adapt to its responses. These alternative approaches, combined with the inherent playfulness of flirtation, improve the continuous reliability of complex, dynamic systems. ### Benefits to the Ecosystem (1000 character max) We all want our systems to be able to withstand real-world scenarios, but building confidence in their ability to do so is not straightforward. Software testing has a bad reputation of being insufficiently dynamic or realistic, and as a result is often overlooked in favour of observability. Insufficient testing, and the belief that testing and observability are at odds with each other, is a major risk to reliability and resilience. In this talk, we want to challenge people's assumptions of what testing looks like and update the testing playbook with new approaches that are more suited for modern, distributed systems. Our goal is for attendees to walk away with concrete test scenarios and observability best practices that they can use to improve system reliability. ## Structure ## The presentation [Slides](https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1uJwmL_pN6_nf__bWFjOsprwkbesTTbZFxYMik07UbOU/edit#slide=id.p1)