Ranorex Forum

What are all the benefits that masking data provides?

From what I understand, masking data hides the data in reports. I am assuming it also hides actual data when taking a snapshot of the solution. Is that correct? Does masking data do anything else?

Masking only masks specifically designated data fields from the test data connectors (SQL, XLS, CSV, or simple) in the report. It does not work on parameter values (global or test-case). It is only intended to allow you to use passwords or other sensitive data in the test without exposing it to everyone who might see the report.

The snapshot is a different thing, it just captures all of the Ranorex-visible UI data from the System Under Test (SUT) at the time of the capture, it does not automatically mask anything because it doesn't know what to mask.


I would HIGHLY recommend that you NOT use ANY production information in your tests (including REAL passwords/user accounts), EVER! You should be creating test user accounts that have the correct rights in your TEST ENVIRONMENT ONLY, and only use those accounts for testing. This is the only way to truly ensure that no sensitive information is released (you can still mask those accounts' passwords if desired). I would NEVER use my personal account for testing anything, especially for automation. This is an invitation for disaster. In addition, your SUT's test data should not include production customer information, as this typically breaches all kinds of regulations and responsibilities in terms of customer information and Payment-Card-Industry (PCI) compliance, if you process card payments.