Computer Knowledge: Fundamentals With a Banking-Technology Focus
Computer Knowledge is 20 questions in Phase I and is the most easily secured section, but only if preparation follows the paper's actual bias: basic hardware and software, MS Office, internet and networking, database concepts, cyber security, and above all the technology that runs banking - payment systems, digital channels and the regulators behind them.
Core rules
- Know the machine: input and output devices, memory hierarchy (register, cache, RAM, secondary storage), generations of computers, and the difference between system software and application software.
- MS Office questions cluster around spreadsheet functions (SUM, IF, VLOOKUP, COUNT) and standard shortcuts; learn the function, not just the key.
- Banking technology: NEFT is a deferred net settlement system operating in half-hourly batches, 24x7 since December 2019; RTGS is real-time gross settlement with a minimum of ₹2 lakh and no upper limit; IMPS and UPI run through NPCI; CTS handles cheque clearing; AEPS and NACH serve inclusion and bulk transfers.
- Security: distinguish phishing, vishing, smishing, ransomware, trojans and worms; a firewall filters traffic, it does not remove viruses; two-factor authentication and digital signatures address authenticity, not confidentiality alone.
Worked example
Question: A customer must transfer ₹8 lakh at 11 p.m. and needs immediate settlement. Reasoning: NEFT is available but settles in batches, so value is not instantaneous; RTGS settles transaction by transaction and, being above the ₹2 lakh floor, it fits. Answer: RTGS. The distractor is IMPS, which has a per-transaction limit below the amount in most channels.
Traps
- Treating NEFT and RTGS as interchangeable; the settlement basis is the tested distinction.
- Confusing a firewall with antivirus, or a worm with a trojan.
- Answering from outdated limits and timings that predate 24x7 NEFT.