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Free SIA security mock test
Sample questions from every SIA paper printed with their answers and explanations, to read through before you try the timed tests.
Attackers often study a site beforehand to find weaknesses. Alert security staff can spot and disrupt this planning stage.
Ongoing distress after an incident is common. Encourage the colleague to seek help and let a manager know so support can be arranged.
After a citizen's arrest the person must be handed to the police as soon as practicable. Holding or questioning them for longer than necessary could be unlawful.
Radio link schemes, Pubwatch and business crime reduction partnerships let venues, shops and the police share warnings about offenders and incidents in real time.
If a casualty is unresponsive and not breathing normally, start CPR straight away. Early chest compressions greatly improve the chance of survival.
The arrest must be necessary to prevent injury, prevent loss or damage to property, or stop the person making off before a constable can take over.
Guarding premises against unauthorised access, theft and damage is security guarding. Close protection is about guarding individuals and public space surveillance is CCTV work.
Once you are safe, call the police on 999 and tell them where the attackers are, what they look like and what weapons they have.
The confidential anti terrorist hotline is 0800 789 321. Suspicious activity can also be reported online through the ACT website.
Call 999 whenever there is an immediate danger. The hotline is for suspicions and concerns that are not an emergency.
Suspicion does not create a power of search. Refusing a search inside the venue is normally a breach of the conditions of entry, so the person can be asked to leave. Pass what you saw to the manager and the police if appropriate.
A wand lets staff check for metal weapons quickly and with little physical contact, which is less intrusive for the customer. It does not detect drugs, and the customer's consent is still needed.
Being open about recording is required by data protection guidance and often calms the situation. Announce it, keep recording until the incident is over and make sure the camera's light or sign is visible.
The small folding pocket knife exemption does not cover knives whose blade locks. Carrying a lock knife in public needs a good reason, and a night out is not one. Follow the venue policy and consider informing the police.
Fire exits must never be locked, wedged or obstructed while people are on the premises. Blocking an exit breaks fire safety law and could cost lives. Offer a safe alternative and record what you were asked to do.
Consent can be withdrawn at any point. If it is, the search must stop. Continuing without consent would be an assault. He can be refused entry, and his behaviour may be worth recording.
Acceptable proof of age is an original document such as a passport, a photo driving licence, or a PASS hologram card. Images on a phone cannot be checked properly and should not be accepted.
A venue must know how many people are inside at all times so it never goes over capacity and so the fire service can be told the number in an emergency. Count people out as carefully as you count them in.
Asking the person to empty their own pockets keeps your hands out of their clothing, which protects you from sharps and from accusations.
Perimeter detection gives the earliest warning that someone is entering the site, before they reach buildings.
Access control makes sure only authorised people, vehicles and goods enter or leave. It protects people, property and information.
Same-sex searching protects the dignity of the person and reduces the risk of complaints against the searcher.
Lighting removes hiding places, improves camera images and makes it safer for officers to patrol.
Security staff often see incidents first. Clear, factual observations and notes can be vital evidence later.
Patrols deter crime, find hazards and insecure areas, and show a visible presence on the site.
Lost keys may mean the locks need changing. Delay gives anyone who finds them time to use them.
Personal data must not be kept longer than necessary. The scheme sets a retention period that matches its purpose and deletes routine footage after it.
Behaviour like this is a reason to watch more closely and gather facts. It is not proof of an offence, and the operator does not decide guilt.
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 sets the general duties on employers and employees. The other Acts deal with data, licensing and discrimination.
The organisation that owns the scheme is the data controller. It decides the purposes of the system and is accountable for how images are used.
Planned covert monitoring of a named person is directed surveillance and needs proper authorisation. The control room should see or record that authorisation before acting.
Images from which a living person can be identified are personal data. The scheme must handle them in line with the data protection principles.
Everyone has things that wind them up. Knowing yours means you can notice when you are being provoked and choose a calm, professional response instead of reacting.
Explaining the position, offering to check and giving the man choices treats him with respect and keeps the decision with the right person, without calling him a liar or giving in.
People expect to be treated the same way each time. When rules change without warning or are applied unevenly, they feel unfairly treated and conflict is more likely.
Dynamic risk assessment is done in your head, in real time, and is updated constantly as the people, place and circumstances change in front of you.
Noise, poor lighting, language differences, alcohol and strong emotions all get in the way of a message. Where you can, move to somewhere quieter and better lit.
Disengagement starts with a clear verbal command. If that fails, a trained release technique that uses the weak point of the grip is used with the minimum force needed. Striking or bending fingers risks injury and is hard to justify.
Medical conditions, pregnancy and head injuries all raise the risk of serious harm during restraint and should change how, or whether, a hold is used. Wearing glasses is not a risk factor in itself.
Clear verbal requests, giving time to comply, calling for support and withdrawing are all alternatives to force. Physical intervention should only follow when these have failed or are not safe to try.
A sudden change from struggling to stillness, blue or grey lips, gurgling, vomiting or loss of consciousness are emergency signs. Stop the restraint, check breathing and call an ambulance.
Employers and venues can be held liable for the actions of their staff, including through civil claims and licensing reviews. The individual remains responsible for their own actions too.
Read each question, decide on your answer, then read the explanation under it. The explanations are the useful part: they tell you the rule or the procedure the question is testing, so the next question on the same topic will be easier whatever form it takes. When a section feels comfortable, follow its link to the timed practice test for that paper.
The SIA publishes the learning outcomes for every unit, and the awarding bodies write their papers from them. So did we. The questions on this site are our own, written and checked by London SIA Course, and they cover the same ground in the same multiple choice form as the real exams, with four options and one right answer.
No. The awarding bodies keep the real papers private. Every question here was written for London SIA Course from the published learning outcomes, so it tests the same knowledge in the same format without being the real paper.
A Door Supervisor candidate answers 172 questions across four papers: 72 in Unit 1, 50 in the door supervisor paper, 20 in conflict management and 30 in physical intervention. Security Guard candidates answer 152 across three papers, and CCTV candidates 112 across two.
Yes. The button on this page gives you the printed questions and answers as a PDF to read on the train or at the centre.
Each section links to the full practice test for that paper, with the real question count and time limit, a quick ten question round and a practice mode that explains every answer as you go.
Questions last checked: 20 October 2026. These are practice questions written for London SIA Course, not the official exam papers.
Practise with our free mock tests until you pass comfortably, then book your course.