The paper is devoted to the analysis of world risk society in the social philosophy of Ulrich Beck. Actually her philosophy can be considered the political philosophy and thus it focuses on historical perception of risk society and revealing of its new features in the modern era. The article considers innovations that distinguish the world society of risk from the previous society of modern and postmodern risk: the difference between risk and catastrophe, risk and cultural judgments about risk. From the difference between risk and catastrophe, there is a need for protective action.