Nova Scotia Security Guard
Practice Test

A. The Private Investigators and Private Guards Act ✓

B. The Police Act

C. The Criminal Code of Canada

D. The Occupational Health and Safety Act

Correct — A. Nova Scotia's Private Investigators and Private Guards Act is the primary provincial legislation that regulates the licensing and conduct of private security guards. The other options govern different aspects of public law or workplace safety.

A. A written policy requiring guards to use force in all confrontations

B. A legal maximum amount of force guards are always permitted to use

C. A model describing escalating levels of force from presence and communication up to physical control ✓

D. A mandatory sequence of physical techniques guards must follow in every situation

Correct — C. The force continuum is a conceptual model that guides security personnel in selecting a proportionate response, starting from officer presence and verbal communication, through soft control techniques, and escalating to harder physical interventions only as circumstances require.

A. A municipal police officer

B. Any private citizen ✓

C. An RCMP officer

D. A provincial sheriff

Correct — B. Security guards in Nova Scotia are private citizens and hold no special police powers. Their authority to detain a suspect is limited to that of any private citizen under Canadian law, primarily through citizen's arrest provisions.

A. Physical restraint

B. Calling for police backup

C. Threatening arrest

D. Verbal de-escalation ✓

Correct — D. Verbal de-escalation is always the preferred first response because it seeks to resolve the situation without physical contact. Using communication and a calm demeanor can resolve most situations without requiring physical force.

A. Acting suspiciously near a building

B. Trespassing on private property

C. Committing an indictable offence ✓

D. Failing to show identification when asked

Correct — C. Section 494 of the Criminal Code allows any person, including security guards, to arrest without a warrant someone found committing an indictable offence. Mere suspicion, trespass, or refusal to show ID does not by itself justify a citizen's arrest.

A. Reasonable and proportionate to the threat presented ✓

B. Approved in advance by the employer in writing

C. Limited to verbal commands only

D. Identical to what a police officer would use in the same situation

Correct — A. Section 27 of the Criminal Code permits reasonable force to prevent the commission of an offence. The force used must match the level of threat; disproportionate force is not protected and can result in criminal or civil liability.

A. Hold the person until they confess

B. Conduct a full search of the person's belongings

C. Keep the person detained for up to 24 hours for questioning

D. Deliver the arrested person to police as soon as reasonably possible ✓

Correct — D. Under section 494(3) of the Criminal Code, anyone who makes a citizen's arrest must promptly deliver the arrested person to a peace officer. Prolonged detention by a private person without turning them over to police can be unlawful.

A. Pre-emptive physical restraint to ensure safety

B. Maintain a safe distance, use a calm voice, and attempt verbal de-escalation ✓

C. Immediately call for police without communicating with the person

D. Retreat from the area and abandon the post

Correct — B. Verbal aggression without a physical threat does not justify physical intervention. Maintaining a safe distance while using calm, clear verbal communication is the appropriate response that may resolve the situation without escalation.