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AQA · GCSE · Computer Science

Free AQA GCSE Computer Science
Practice Paper

8 mixed-difficulty practice questions in the style of real AQA GCSE papers — answers, mark-scheme-style explanations, and the official exam structure all on one page.

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What the real AQA GCSE Computer Science paper looks like

Paper 1
Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 1-4 of the specification.
Paper 2
Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 5-8 of the specification.
Paper 3
Where applicable — e.g. Combined Science, Languages. Includes synoptic and applied questions.
Total exam time: ~3 hours across two or three papers.
Grading: Grades: 9 (highest) to 1 (lowest), with U (ungraded). A grade of 4 is a standard pass; 5 is a strong pass.

Mini practice paper: 8 questions

Mixed-difficulty questions from across the Computer Science syllabus. Tap "Show answer" after each to check yourself.

Q1 · Difficulty 1/3

Under the Data Protection Act 2018, an organisation holding personal data must:

  1. Publish all the data it holds on a public website
  2. Keep the data indefinitely in case it is needed
  3. Keep the data accurate, secure and use it only for the stated purpose
  4. Sell the data only to approved buyers
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: C — Keep the data accurate, secure and use it only for the stated purpose
Award 1 mark. The Act sets principles rather than a list of permitted actions: data must be relevant, accurate, kept no longer than necessary and protected. Individuals also gain rights, including seeing what is held about them and having errors corrected.
Q2 · Difficulty 1/3

What is bandwidth?

  1. The physical length of a network cable
  2. The number of devices connected to a network
  3. The amount of data that can be transmitted in a given time
  4. The delay before data begins to arrive
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: C — The amount of data that can be transmitted in a given time
Award 1 mark. Bandwidth is capacity, usually quoted in megabits per second, and it is shared between everyone using the connection. The delay before data starts arriving is latency, which is a separate measure and can be poor even on a high-bandwidth link.
Q3 · Difficulty 1/3

What does the expression 17 DIV 5 evaluate to?

  1. 2
  2. 3.4
  3. 3
  4. 85
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: C — 3
Award 1 mark. DIV performs integer division and discards any remainder, so 17 divided by 5 gives 3 whole fives. The remainder of 2 is what MOD would return, and 3.4 is what ordinary division would give.
Q4 · Difficulty 1/3

Discarded electronic devices that can harm the environment if not disposed of properly are known as:

  1. Landfill gas
  2. E-waste
  3. Greywater
  4. Biomass
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: B — E-waste
E-waste (electronic waste) can contain toxic materials; improper disposal pollutes land and water, so recycling and reuse are encouraged.
Q5 · Difficulty 1/3

Proprietary (closed-source) software is software where:

  1. The source code is published so anyone may modify it
  2. The software may never be sold for money
  3. The source code is kept private and users buy a licence to use it
  4. No licence agreement of any kind applies
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: C — The source code is kept private and users buy a licence to use it
Award 1 mark. Buying proprietary software buys permission to use it, not the code itself, so users depend on the vendor for support and updates. Published, modifiable code describes open-source software instead.
Q6 · Difficulty 1/3

Under data protection law, an individual has the right to:

  1. Demand that an organisation deletes its entire customer database
  2. See the personal data an organisation holds about them and have errors corrected
  3. Be paid a fee whenever their data is stored
  4. Access the personal data that organisations hold about other people
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: B — See the personal data an organisation holds about them and have errors corrected
Award 1 mark. The law gives individuals rights over their OWN data, including access, correction and in many cases erasure. It gives no right to other people's data and no right to payment, and the right to erasure covers that individual's records rather than the whole database.
Q7 · Difficulty 1/3

Which action helps reduce the environmental impact of computing?

  1. Buying a new phone every month
  2. Recycling and reusing old devices
  3. Throwing devices into landfill
  4. Leaving all equipment on overnight unnecessarily
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: B — Recycling and reusing old devices
Recycling, reusing, repairing and using energy-efficient settings all reduce e-waste and energy consumption.
Q8 · Difficulty 1/3

Which data type would be most appropriate for storing whether a user is logged in (true or false)?

  1. Integer
  2. String
  3. Real
  4. Boolean
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: D — Boolean
A Boolean stores one of two values, true or false, ideal for an on/off or yes/no condition. Integer, string and real store numbers and text.
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AQA GCSE Computer Science FAQ

What does the AQA GCSE Computer Science exam look like?
The AQA GCSE Computer Science exam is structured across 3 components. Paper 1: Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 1-4 of the specification. Paper 2: Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 5-8 of the specification. Paper 3: Where applicable — e.g. Combined Science, Languages. Includes synoptic and applied questions. Total exam time: ~3 hours across two or three papers.
Can I download a free AQA GCSE Computer Science past paper?
Real AQA past papers are published directly by AQA on their official website. Kramizo doesn't redistribute copyrighted past papers, but we do generate free AI-written practice papers in the exact same style — same command words, same difficulty tier, same mark conventions. Use this practice paper as warm-up, then time yourself on official past papers before exam day.
How is AQA GCSE Computer Science graded?
Grades: 9 (highest) to 1 (lowest), with U (ungraded). A grade of 4 is a standard pass; 5 is a strong pass. Kramizo's practice questions are tagged with difficulty 1-3 mapping roughly to the lower, middle, and top grade boundaries you'll encounter in the real exam.