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MoT Newcastle: Shift Left Security Testing and We Need to Talk About Cucumber

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What to expect

Learn practical approaches to integrating security testing early in your development cycle at this Newcastle testing community meetup. This Ministry of Testing event brings together two experienced test engineers to share hands-on strategies for shift-left security and insights into BDD practices with Cucumber.

What You'll Learn

The evening features two dedicated sessions from seasoned practitioners currently working in DWP Digital. In the opening talk, Alap Patel will demonstrate how to embed security testing into your existing workflows using OWASP ZAP. You'll discover practical techniques for leveraging ZAP Docker for passive scans, integrating security checks into your current UI/API automation frameworks, and adding security testing into CI/CD pipelines with minimal disruption to your existing processes.

The second session features Callum McKeefery presenting "We Need to Talk About Cucumber" — a candid discussion about BDD practices and test automation. Callum brings over 16 years of testing experience across various government digital services and is a passionate advocate for good test automation practices and behaviour-driven development.

Who Should Attend

This meetup is ideal for test engineers, QA professionals, developers interested in quality practices, and anyone working with automation frameworks or CI/CD pipelines. Whether you're looking to strengthen your security testing approach or refine your BDD implementation, you'll gain actionable insights from practitioners leading testing teams across major digital programmes.

Event Format

The meetup runs from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM at ThoughtWorks in Newcastle city centre. Talks begin at 6:30 PM, with pizza and drinks provided throughout the evening. After the presentations, there's an opportunity to continue discussions and network with fellow testers at nearby Bar Baccus.

About the Speakers

Alap Patel is a Lead Test Engineer with over 16 years of QA experience, currently leading testing across a major digital programme. He manages a team of more than 30 test engineers across 10+ projects, with expertise spanning test strategies, UI and API automation, performance testing, security testing, and applying AI in testing to enhance productivity.

Callum McKeefery is a Lead Test Engineer in DWP Digital's Debt Services space. His testing journey began in 2008 within the Civil Service, progressing through DWP and HMRC Digital

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