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100+ Free IB Digital Society SL Practice Questions

Pass your IB Diploma Digital Society Standard Level (SL) exam on the first try — instant access, no signup required.

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State-sponsored cyber attacks typically have which feature in common?

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2026 Statistics

Key Facts: IB Digital Society SL Exam

1-7

Grading scale

IB Diploma Programme

May 2024

First exam session

IBO Digital Society

30%

Inquiry Project IA weighting

IBO Digital Society SL assessment

100

Free practice questions here

OpenExamPrep

IB Digital Society SL is assessed through Paper 1 (real-world examples, 40%), Paper 2 (source-based questions, 30%) and the Inquiry Project IA (30%). The course covers data, algorithms, computers, networks, media, and AI for first exams 2024 and 2026 sessions.

Sample IB Digital Society SL Practice Questions

Try these sample questions to test your IB Digital Society SL exam readiness. Each question includes a detailed explanation. Start the interactive quiz above for the full 100+ question experience with AI tutoring.

1Which best distinguishes quantitative from qualitative data?
A.Quantitative data is numerical and measurable; qualitative data is descriptive and categorical
B.Quantitative data is always structured; qualitative data is always unstructured
C.Quantitative data is collected by sensors; qualitative data is collected by surveys
D.Quantitative data is private; qualitative data is public
Explanation: Quantitative data is numeric and can be counted or measured (e.g. age, temperature). Qualitative data describes attributes or categories (e.g. interview transcripts, colours). The distinction is about data type, not source or structure.
2A smart watch logs every heartbeat to a JSON file with timestamp fields. This is best described as:
A.Structured data from a sensor
B.Unstructured data from user input
C.Qualitative metadata only
D.Big data with no veracity
Explanation: JSON with consistent timestamp and value fields is a structured (or semi-structured) format. The data source is a biometric sensor on the wearable. Both attributes are observable and verifiable, so it is structured sensor data.
3In the 5 Vs of big data, what does Veracity refer to?
A.The trustworthiness and quality of the data
B.The speed at which data arrives
C.The total amount of data
D.The different formats of data
Explanation: Veracity is one of the 5 Vs and refers to how trustworthy, accurate and clean the data is. Noisy, biased, or unreliable data has low veracity. The other four Vs are Volume, Velocity, Variety, and Value.
4Which type of data analytics asks 'what should we do next'?
A.Prescriptive analytics
B.Descriptive analytics
C.Diagnostic analytics
D.Predictive analytics
Explanation: Prescriptive analytics recommends actions and decisions. Descriptive looks at what happened, diagnostic at why it happened, and predictive at what will happen. Prescriptive is generally the most actionable and most complex of the four.
5Metadata is best described as:
A.Data about data, such as file creation date or photo geolocation
B.Big data collected from social media platforms
C.Personally identifiable information that must be anonymised
D.Data visualisations such as charts and dashboards
Explanation: Metadata is structured information that describes other data — for example a photo's EXIF data (camera model, timestamp, GPS) or an email's headers. Metadata can be highly revealing even when the underlying content is encrypted.
6Anonymisation differs from pseudonymisation because:
A.Anonymisation removes identifiers irreversibly; pseudonymisation replaces them with tokens that can be reversed
B.Anonymisation uses encryption; pseudonymisation uses hashing
C.Anonymisation is only for sensor data; pseudonymisation is only for surveys
D.Anonymisation is required by CCPA but not GDPR
Explanation: True anonymisation removes the link between data and an identifiable person so it cannot be reversed. Pseudonymisation substitutes identifiers with tokens or codes that can be re-linked using a separate key. Pseudonymous data is still personal data under GDPR.
7The EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into force in:
A.2018
B.2016
C.2020
D.2024
Explanation: GDPR was adopted by the EU in 2016 but only became enforceable on 25 May 2018. It introduced rights such as access, rectification, erasure ('right to be forgotten') and data portability, plus fines up to 4% of global turnover.
8An online recruitment dataset contains 95% male software engineers from the 1990s. A model trained on it under-recommends women. This is best described as:
A.Historical and representation bias in training data
B.Sampling bias only, easily fixed by adding random rows
C.Algorithmic transparency failure unrelated to data
D.A veracity issue caused by encryption
Explanation: The dataset reflects past hiring imbalance (historical bias) and under-represents women (representation bias). Random row additions cannot fix structural under-representation. Amazon's scrapped hiring tool (2018) is the textbook real-world example.
9A government requires that citizen health data be stored only on servers physically located inside the country. This policy is an example of:
A.Data sovereignty
B.Data anonymisation
C.Data minimisation
D.Data velocity
Explanation: Data sovereignty is the principle that data is subject to the laws of the country in which it is stored. Localisation laws — common in the EU, China, Russia and India — are a major lever for sovereignty in cross-border cloud services.
10Which data collection method is most likely to produce unstructured data?
A.Free-text social media posts scraped from the web
B.A multiple-choice online survey with five Likert items
C.Temperature sensors logging to a CSV every minute
D.An online form with required fields and validation
Explanation: Free-text posts have no predefined schema and can include text, links, emojis and images, making them unstructured. Likert surveys, CSV sensor logs and validated forms all enforce a schema and produce structured data.

About the IB Digital Society SL Exam

IB Digital Society SL (launched 2022, first exams 2024) is an interdisciplinary individuals and societies subject in the IB Diploma Programme. Students investigate the impact of digital systems on people and communities using six content areas — data, algorithms, computers, networks and the internet, media, and AI — through the lens of six concepts (change, expression, identity, power, space, systems, values and ethics) and a range of real-world contexts.

Questions

100 scored questions

Time Limit

Paper 1: 1h 30min (40%) and Paper 2: 1h 15min (30%); IA Inquiry Project (30%)

Passing Score

Grade 4 (out of 7) is considered a pass in most contexts

Exam Fee

Approx. USD $119 per subject registration (school-set) (International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO))

IB Digital Society SL Exam Content Outline

~15%

Content: Data

Data types (quantitative/qualitative, structured/unstructured), collection methods, metadata, big data 5 Vs, analytics, visualisation, GDPR/CCPA privacy, encryption, and bias in data

~15%

Content: Algorithms

Sorting and searching, recommendation systems (YouTube, Netflix, TikTok), Google PageRank, filter bubbles, algorithmic bias (COMPAS, Gender Shades), explainability and black-box problems

~10%

Content: Computers

Hardware vs software, embedded systems, IoT, wearables, smart cities, edge computing, assistive technologies, obsolescence and e-waste, quantum computing basics

~15%

Content: Networks and the Internet

Internet vs web, ISPs, net neutrality, digital divide, Web 1.0/2.0/3.0, Web3 blockchain, cybersecurity threats, symmetric/asymmetric encryption, VPNs, deepfakes and misinformation

~15%

Content: Media

Traditional vs digital media, social platforms, citizen journalism, clickbait and SEO, echo chambers, Cambridge Analytica, immersive AR/VR, streaming, gaming, CRAAP test and lateral reading

~20%

Content: Artificial Intelligence

Narrow vs general AI, supervised/unsupervised/reinforcement learning, deep learning, NLP, computer vision, generative AI, AI hallucinations, EU AI Act 2024, AI alignment, AGI and existential risk

~10%

Inquiry and Global Perspectives

Inquiry process, ethical frameworks (utilitarianism, deontology, virtue ethics), stakeholder analysis, UN SDGs digital impact, UNESCO AI ethics recommendation 2021

How to Pass the IB Digital Society SL Exam

What You Need to Know

  • Passing score: Grade 4 (out of 7) is considered a pass in most contexts
  • Exam length: 100 questions
  • Time limit: Paper 1: 1h 30min (40%) and Paper 2: 1h 15min (30%); IA Inquiry Project (30%)
  • Exam fee: Approx. USD $119 per subject registration (school-set)

Keys to Passing

  • Complete 500+ practice questions
  • Score 80%+ consistently before scheduling
  • Focus on highest-weighted sections
  • Use our AI tutor for tough concepts

IB Digital Society SL Study Tips from Top Performers

1Build a running case-study bank — Cambridge Analytica, COMPAS, Gender Shades, EU AI Act — so you can quote real examples in Paper 1
2Practise source analysis weekly using past Paper 2 dossiers and current news articles; apply the CRAAP test and lateral reading
3Anchor every answer in a concept (change, power, identity, etc.) and a context (cultural, political, etc.) — examiners reward this framing
4Start the Inquiry Project early; the most marks are lost on weak research-question framing and missing counter-arguments

Frequently Asked Questions

When were the first IB Digital Society SL exams?

The Digital Society course was launched in 2022 with the first exam session in May 2024. It replaces the former Information Technology in a Global Society (ITGS) course in the IB Diploma Programme.

How is IB Digital Society SL assessed?

SL students sit Paper 1 (1h 30min, 40%) on real-world examples requiring social-scientist thinking, Paper 2 (1h 15min, 30%) using a pre-released source dossier on media literacy and a related issue, and complete the Inquiry Project internal assessment (30%).

What content areas are covered in IB Digital Society?

Six content areas: Data, Algorithms, Computers, Networks and the Internet, Media, and Artificial Intelligence. They are explored through six concepts (change, expression, identity, power, space, systems, values and ethics) and contexts such as cultural, economic, environmental, health, political and social.

How is IB Digital Society SL graded?

All IB Diploma subjects are graded 1-7, with 7 being the highest. A grade of 4 is generally considered a pass. Final grades combine the two external papers with the internally-assessed Inquiry Project.