Checked 26 October 2026. The laws behind the worked examples and the law table were read on e-Laws on 26 October 2026 (the Trespass to Property Act as amended in June 2025) and on Justice Laws on 25 October 2026. Laws are amended; check the current version of a section before you rely on it.
People search for Ontario security guard test questions and answers, often as a PDF. None of the official pages read for this guide publishes the ministry’s test questions: the study guide says they were written by industry experts with the ministry’s test development consultant, and the test provider says it gives no individualized feedback on marked tests, to preserve the integrity and security of the test questions. What you can do is practise on questions written from the same law and the same training syllabus. This page works through two of ours, then sets out the sections of the law that the syllabus asks a security guard to know, so you can see the kind of reasoning the test topics call for.
ProSyllabus is an independent study site. It is not part of the Government of Ontario, the Ministry of the Solicitor General or its test provider, and nothing here is the ministry test. Every rule on this page is quoted or summarised from the official pages listed at the foot of the page.
Test facts: Government of Ontario, Security guard and private investigator testing and Training syllabus for security guards (read 26 Oct 2026).
FreeTests: Section 2: The PSISA and the Code of Conduct · Section 8: Legal authorities
Ontario Security Guard Practice Test: free sample
Answer 3 questions against the clock, like the real exam. You then see the right answer, the reason and your time on each. About 4 minutes · free · no sign-in.
3 questions to answer
Start nowabout 5 minThis one is free · no sign-in needed
Your result shows how long each question took you.
How to use the worked examples
Pick an answer before you open "Show the answer". The point is to find out what you would choose in the test room, not to recognise the right answer once you have seen it. Then read the reason and the section it rests on. Most legal questions turn on exactly what a section says a guard must or may do, and knowing the section is what lets you answer a differently worded question on the same rule.
Worked example 1: the PSISA
Worked example 1 · Section 2: The PSISA and the Code of Conduct
To get a shoplifter's attention, a guard shouts, "Stop, I'm with the police!" Which PSISA section does this break?
- (A) Section 45: the maximum fine for a business entity convicted of an offence
- (B) Section 10: the age and work requirements to hold a licence
- (C) Section 35: carrying the licence and producing it when asked
- (D) Section 39: falsely holding out as performing duties connected with police
Show the answer
Answer: (D) Section 39: falsely holding out as performing duties connected with police. PSISA s. 39 says no licensee shall falsely hold themselves out as providing services or performing duties connected with police. Claiming to be with the police also uses a term (police) that s. 40 forbids.
An original ProSyllabus question written from Ontario and Canadian law. Not a question from the ministry test.
Why it matters: sections 39 and 40 of the PSISA exist because a security guard has no police powers. Section 40 also bans the word "officer", so even the common phrase "security officer" is off limits; the study guide gives it as an example.
Worked example 2: after a citizen’s arrest
Worked example 2 · Section 8: Legal authorities
A guard lawfully arrests a shoplifter without a warrant. What does section 494(3) of the Criminal Code require the guard to do next?
- (A) Hold the person until the store manager decides
- (B) Release the person once the goods are returned
- (C) Deliver the person to a peace officer forthwith
- (D) Take a photo of the person and issue a ban notice
Show the answer
Answer: (C) Deliver the person to a peace officer forthwith. Criminal Code s. 494(3): any one other than a peace officer who arrests a person without warrant shall forthwith deliver the person to a peace officer. The study guide: once an arrest has been performed, the guard must deliver the individual to a peace officer as soon as possible.
An original ProSyllabus question written from Ontario and Canadian law. Not a question from the ministry test.
Why it matters: an arrest without warrant is the start of a process, not the end of it. The study guide says that once an arrest has been made the guard must deliver the person to a peace officer as soon as possible; holding the person for the client, or letting them go, is not an option the section gives you. The Trespass to Property Act has its own version of the rule in section 9(2): promptly call for a police officer and give the person into police custody.
The law the syllabus asks you to know
Section 8 of the syllabus, Legal Authorities, has the most course hours, and section 2 covers the PSISA and the Code of Conduct. These are the provisions most security guard situations turn on. The summaries are ours; the wording is in the Acts linked at the foot of the page.
| Law | What it says, in short |
|---|---|
| PSISA s. 2(4) | A security guard performs work, for pay, that consists primarily of guarding or patrolling to protect persons or property |
| PSISA s. 35 | Carry your licence; on request, identify yourself as a security guard and produce it; wear a compliant uniform (except bodyguards and loss prevention); no other identification or symbol of authority except as provided for in the regulations |
| PSISA s. 39 and s. 40 | Do not hold yourself out as police; do not use the words detective, private detective, law enforcement, police or officer |
| PSISA s. 45 | An individual convicted of an offence under the Act: a fine up to $25,000, up to one year in jail, or both |
| O. Reg. 363/07 | The Code of Conduct: honesty, equal treatment without discrimination, no unnecessary force, confidentiality, not unfit for duty through alcohol or drugs |
| Criminal Code s. 494 | Any one may arrest without warrant a person found committing an indictable offence; the owner or a person in lawful possession of property, or a person authorized by the owner or by a person in lawful possession of property, may arrest a person found committing a criminal offence on or in relation to that property (at the time, or within a reasonable time if it is not feasible for a peace officer to do it); then deliver the person to a peace officer forthwith |
| Criminal Code s. 25 and s. 26 | A person authorized by law, acting on reasonable grounds, may use as much force as is necessary, and is criminally responsible for any excess |
| Criminal Code s. 34 and s. 35 | Defence of persons and of property: the act must be for a defensive purpose and reasonable in the circumstances |
| Trespass to Property Act s. 2 | Entering where entry is prohibited, or not leaving immediately when directed by the occupier or a person they authorize, is an offence (fine up to $10,000) |
| Trespass to Property Act s. 9 | The occupier or a person they authorize may arrest a person on the premises in contravention of section 2, then must promptly call for a police officer and hand the person over |
FreeTests: Section 2: The PSISA and the Code of Conduct · Section 8: Legal authorities
Ontario Security Guard Practice Test: free sample
Answer 3 questions against the clock, like the real exam. You then see the right answer, the reason and your time on each. About 4 minutes · free · no sign-in.
3 questions to answer
Start nowabout 5 minThis one is free · no sign-in needed
Your result shows how long each question took you.
What our practice test covers, by syllabus section
None of the official pages read for this guide gives how many test questions come from each syllabus section, so the counts below describe the ProSyllabus practice test only. Each of our mocks gives each section about the share of course hours the syllabus suggests for it.
ProSyllabus practice test: 248 questions in two mocks of 60, 12 section drills and a 3-question free sample. Our counts, not the weighting of the ministry test.
| Fact | Ministry test (Ontario) | ProSyllabus mock |
|---|---|---|
| Questions | 60 multiple-choice | 60 per mock, two mocks, plus section drills |
| Time | 75 minutes | 75 minutes per mock |
| Cut score | 62% (study guide) | Your score out of 60 and by syllabus section; a practice score is not a test result and does not guarantee a pass |
| The questions | Developed by industry subject matter experts who worked with the ministry’s test development consultant; not published on any official page read | Written by ProSyllabus from Ontario and Canadian law and the syllabus |
| Answers explained | No individualized feedback on marked tests | Every answer, naming the section of the law or the syllabus passage behind it |
Want the full practice test?
Your training course comes first. If you also want timed practice, the ProSyllabus Ontario security guard practice test has two mocks of 60 questions with a 75-minute clock, a drill for each syllabus section, your score by section and the reason behind every answer. Three questions are free, including the two above; the rest is paid. Our own questions, not the ministry test, and not made or endorsed by the Government of Ontario. For the format, booking, fee and pass mark, see the Ontario security guard test guide.
FreeTests: Section 2: The PSISA and the Code of Conduct · Section 8: Legal authorities
Ontario Security Guard Practice Test: free sample
Answer 3 questions against the clock, like the real exam. You then see the right answer, the reason and your time on each. About 4 minutes · free · no sign-in.
3 questions to answer
Start nowabout 5 minThis one is free · no sign-in needed
Your result shows how long each question took you.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get the real Ontario security guard test questions and answers as a PDF?
None of the official pages read for this guide publishes them, and the test provider gives no individualized feedback on marked tests, to preserve the integrity and security of the test questions. Practise on questions written from the law and the syllabus instead.
Are these real test questions?
No. They are ProSyllabus’s own questions, written from the Private Security and Investigative Services Act and the Criminal Code. Nothing here comes from the ministry test.
How many questions are on the test and what is the pass mark?
Sixty multiple-choice questions in 75 minutes (ontario.ca). The ministry study guide gives the cut score for the security guard test as 62%.
Which topics come up most?
None of the official pages read gives a per-section split. The training syllabus gives the most course time to section 8, Legal Authorities: 7.5 hours in class plus 10 outside class (17.5 in all).
Will passing the ProSyllabus mocks mean I pass the test?
No. A practice score is not a test result and does not guarantee a pass. The questions are ours, not the ministry’s.
More in this series
Sources
- official — Government of Ontario: Security guard and private investigator testing
- official — Government of Ontario: Security guard study guide
- official — Government of Ontario: Training syllabus for security guards
- official — Ontario security guard and private investigator testing: Frequently asked questions
- official — Private Security and Investigative Services Act, 2005 (e-Laws)
- official — O. Reg. 363/07, Code of Conduct, under the Private Security and Investigative Services Act, 2005 (e-Laws)
- official — Criminal Code, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46 (Justice Laws): sections 25, 26, 34, 35 and 494
- official — Trespass to Property Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. T.21 (e-Laws)
official = a document published by the conducting body. reported = a news or coaching site we could not check against an original. Where sources disagree this page says so rather than picking one.
