Topics covered in previous external exams:
| Topic | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dependability | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Efficiency | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| MVC Architecture Pattern | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Useability Principles | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Visual Communication | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Impacts | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Data Principles | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Normalisation | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Privacy | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Australian Privacy Principles | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Network Transmission Principles | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Network Transmission Protocols | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Data Exchange Methods | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Data Security | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| The CIA Triad | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Encryption | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Caesar cipher | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Vigenère Cipher | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| One-time Pad Encryption | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Symmetric Encryption | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Asymmetric Encryption | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Hashing | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Data Compression | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Checksums | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Malware | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Phishing | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Denial-of-Service (DoS) | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Insider Threats | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| SQL Injection | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Human Error | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Software Measures | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Hardware Measures | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Networking Measures | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Policy Measures | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Mock-ups | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Pseudocode | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Desk Checking | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Data Flow Diagram (DFD) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Data Dictionaries | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| SQL | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| SELECT | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| WHERE | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Filters and Aggregators | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| ORDER BY | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| GROUP BY | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| JOIN | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| INSERT | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
Past Exams Marks Analysis¶
2020 External Exam¶
| Section | Marks | Questions / Topics |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 72 | 1 min 40 secs per mark |
| Multiple Choice | 10 14% | Asymmetric encryption, usability (utility), SQL errors, streaming (latency/jitter), APPs, desk checks, JSON, database dev, SQL GROUP BY/SUM, algorithm maintainability |
| Short Response | 41 57% | Q11a: Visual communication (12) Q11b: UI features (5) Q11c: Justify UI (4) Q12a: Reliability/accuracy (2) Q12b: Self-determined criteria (4) Q12c: JSON justification (2) Q13a: Algorithm sorted names (4) Q13b: Algorithm 10+ years (4) Q13c: Algorithm 3000+ points (4) |
| Extended Response | 21 29% | Q14a: Blowfish algorithm (6) Q14b: Usability principles (6) Q14c: Evaluate email encryption (9) |
2021 External Assessment¶
| Section | Marks | Questions / Topics |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 72 | 1 min 40 secs per mark |
| Multiple Choice | 10 14% | Hashing, UI design, FTP, JSON, DFD interpretation, desk checks, usability, algorithm efficiency, SQL INSERT, checksums |
| Short Response | 36 50% | Q11: DFD (13) Q12a: Confidentiality/Integrity/Availability risks (6) Q12b: APP & ethics (2) Q12c: Caesar desk check (2) Q12d: Caesar pseudocode (8) Q13a: Security (checksums/encryption/authentication) (3) Q13b: Encryption recommendation (2) |
| Extended Response | 26 36% | Q14a: Visual communication (6) Q14b: Evaluate data exchange (6) Q14c: Data security recommendations (6) Q14d: Login UI symbolisation (8) |
2022 External Assessment¶
| Section | Marks | Questions / Topics |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 69 | 1 min 34 secs per mark |
| Multiple Choice | 10 14% | Hashing, RSA, UI alignment, APPs, DFD security, Caesar pseudocode, JSON, HTTP risk, conditionals, desk checks |
| Short Response | 28 41% | Q11: Transmission protocols (2) Q12a: Algorithm constructs (6) Q12b: Modularisation (2) Q13a: One-time pad pseudocode (7) Q13b: Desk check one-time pad (5) Q14: Encrypted results algorithm (6) |
| Extended Response | 31 45% | Q15a: DFD fundraising app (19) Q15b: Synthesis wireframe/DFD (4) Q15c: Processes/data flows (5) Q15d: Impacts (3) |
2023 External Assessment¶
| Section | Marks | Questions / Topics |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 69 | 1 min 34 secs per mark |
| Multiple Choice | 10 14% | Asymmetric encryption, UI screen resize, UI arrangement, latency, Caesar, JSON/REST, nested loops, open data, data dictionary types, SQL |
| Short Response | 34 49% | Q11a: Data size/security (2) Q11b: Password pseudocode (7) Q12a: Security impacts & needs (3) Q12b: VPN secure feature (2) Q13: One-time pad corrections (9) Q14a: Smart home UI symbolisation (7) Q14b: Accessibility features (4) |
| Extended Response | 25 36% | Q15a: XML structure (4) Q15b: Voting rules features (3) Q15c: DFD voting rules (14) Q15d: System interrelationships (4) |
2024 External Assessment¶
| Section | Marks | Questions / Topics |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 66 | 1 min 48 secs per mark |
| Multiple Choice | 10 15% | Visual comm. (scale/accessibility), personalised data impacts, algorithm maintainability, prime number output, UI usability (buttons etc.), DDoS, streaming, JSON with Python, timetabling data stores, secure authentication DFD |
| Short Response | 36 55% | Q11a: APPs (3) Q11b: Risks to CIA & recommendations (6) Q12: Pseudocode JSON gamer data (8) Q13a: UI mock-up/code function (3) Q13b: UI/usability recommendations (6) Q14: DFD one-time pad (10) |
| Extended Response | 20 30% | Q15a: UI prototype navigation app (9) Q15b: Visual comm. principles (4) Q15c: Social need + security impacts (3) Q15d: Security strategy (2) Q15e: New features w/ authentication (2) |
Practice Questions¶
Below are some practice questions worksheets to help you prepare for the assessment. Each worksheet has one practice question, and a marking guide that reflects the external assessment marking guide.