SBI PO 2017 PYQs

Question 1

Directions (Qs 1-10): Which of the phrases given against the sentences should replace the word/ phrase given in
bold
in the sentence to make it grammatically correct? If the sentence is correctas it is given and no correction is required, select ‘No correction required’ as the answer.

Progress is necessary, butby responsibly development, we will be the agents of our own destruction.

Accepted Answer

The sentence implies that without responsible development, progress leads to destruction. 'Without' correctly conveys this conditional negative meaning. 'Responsible development' is the correct noun phrase.

Question 2

Directions (Qs 1-10): Read the following passage carefully and answer the  questions given below it.Certain words are given in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions.
Over a couple of days in February, hundreds of thousands of point-of-sale printers in restaurants around the world began behaving strangely. Some churned out bizarre pictures  of computers and giant robots signed, “with love from the hacker God himself. Some informed their owners that, “YOUR PRINTER HAS BEEN PWND’D”.Some told them, “For the love of God, please close this port”. When the hacker God gave an interview to  Motherboard, a technology website, he claimed to be a British secondary-school pupil by the name of“Stack overflowing”. Annoyed by the
parlous
state of computer security, he had, he claimed, decided to perform a public service by demon starting just how easy it was  to seize control.
Not all hackers are so public spirited, and 2016 was a bonanza for those who are not. In February of that year cyber -crooks stole
$
\$
$
81 m directly from the central bank of Bangladesh—and would have got away with more were it not  for a crucial
typo
.In August America’s National Security Agency (NSA)saw its own hacking tools leaked all over the internet by a group calling themselves the Shadow Brokers.(The C1A suffered a similar indignity this March,) In October a piece of  software called Mirai was used to flood Dyn, an internet infrastructure company, with so much meaningless traffic that websites such as Twitter and Reddit were made inaccessible to many users. And the hacking of the Democratic National Committee’s e- mail servers and the
subsequent
leaking of embarrassing communications seems to have been part of an attempt to influence the outcome of the American elections.
Away from matters of great scale and grand strategy, most hacking is either show-off  vandalism or simply criminal. It is also increasingly easy. Obscure forum soil the trade in stolen credit-card details, sold in batches of thousands at a time. Data-dealers hawk“exploits”: flaws in code that allow malicious attackers to
subvert
systems.You can also buy “ransomware”,with which to encrypt photos and documents on victims’ computers before charging them for the key that will unscramble the data. So sophisticated are these facilitating markets that coding skills are now entirely optional.  Botnets—flocks of compromised computers created by software like Mirai, which can then be used to flood websites with traffic, knocking them offline until a ransom is paid—can be rented by the hour. Just like a legitimate business, the bot-herders will, for a  few dollars extra, provide technical support if anything goes wrong.The total cost of all this hacking is anyone’s guess (most small attacks, and many big ones, go unreported).But all agree it is likely to rise, because the scope for
malice
is  about to expand remarkably.“We are building a world-sized robot,” says Bruce Schneier, a security analyst, in the shape of the“Internet of Things”. The loT is abuzz-phrase used to describe the computerization of everything from cars and electricity meters to  children’s toys, medical devices and light bulbs. In 2015 a group of computer-security researchers demonstrated that it was possible to take remote control of certain Jeep cars. When the Mirai malware is used to build a botnet it seeks out devices such as  video recorders and webcams ; the botnet for fridges is just around the corner.

Which of the following is the most appropriate title for the passage?

Accepted Answer

The passage likely discusses vulnerabilities and failures in computer security, making 'Broken Computer Security' the most fitting title. It encompasses the core theme of security flaws.

Question 3

The presence of new players on the basketball team is toadditionally attractfor the audience.

Accepted Answer

The phrase 'an added attraction' correctly completes the sentence, meaning something that increases appeal. It fits grammatically and semantically.

Question 4

Directions (Qs 1-10): Which of the phrases given against the sentences should replace the word/ phrase given in
bold
in the sentence to make it grammatically correct? If the sentence is correctas it is given and no correction is required, select ‘No correction required’ as the answer.

Plucking andfeast fromfresh, detectable berries is Anna’s a favourite childhood memory.

Accepted Answer

The verb 'feasting' requires the preposition 'on' to indicate what is being eaten. 'Feasting on' correctly completes the phrase, describing Anna's memory.

Question 5

Directions (Qs 1-10): Read the following passage carefully and answer the  questions given below it.Certain words are given in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions.
Over a couple of days in February, hundreds of thousands of point-of-sale printers in restaurants around the world began behaving strangely. Some churned out bizarre pictures  of computers and giant robots signed, “with love from the hacker God himself. Some informed their owners that, “YOUR PRINTER HAS BEEN PWND’D”.Some told them, “For the love of God, please close this port”. When the hacker God gave an interview to  Motherboard, a technology website, he claimed to be a British secondary-school pupil by the name of“Stack overflowing”. Annoyed by the
parlous
state of computer security, he had, he claimed, decided to perform a public service by demon starting just how easy it was  to seize control.
Not all hackers are so public spirited, and 2016 was a bonanza for those who are not. In February of that year cyber -crooks stole
$
\$
$
81 m directly from the central bank of Bangladesh—and would have got away with more were it not  for a crucial
typo
.In August America’s National Security Agency (NSA)saw its own hacking tools leaked all over the internet by a group calling themselves the Shadow Brokers.(The C1A suffered a similar indignity this March,) In October a piece of  software called Mirai was used to flood Dyn, an internet infrastructure company, with so much meaningless traffic that websites such as Twitter and Reddit were made inaccessible to many users. And the hacking of the Democratic National Committee’s e- mail servers and the
subsequent
leaking of embarrassing communications seems to have been part of an attempt to influence the outcome of the American elections.
Away from matters of great scale and grand strategy, most hacking is either show-off  vandalism or simply criminal. It is also increasingly easy. Obscure forum soil the trade in stolen credit-card details, sold in batches of thousands at a time. Data-dealers hawk“exploits”: flaws in code that allow malicious attackers to
subvert
systems.You can also buy “ransomware”,with which to encrypt photos and documents on victims’ computers before charging them for the key that will unscramble the data. So sophisticated are these facilitating markets that coding skills are now entirely optional.  Botnets—flocks of compromised computers created by software like Mirai, which can then be used to flood websites with traffic, knocking them offline until a ransom is paid—can be rented by the hour. Just like a legitimate business, the bot-herders will, for a  few dollars extra, provide technical support if anything goes wrong.The total cost of all this hacking is anyone’s guess (most small attacks, and many big ones, go unreported).But all agree it is likely to rise, because the scope for
malice
is  about to expand remarkably.“We are building a world-sized robot,” says Bruce Schneier, a security analyst, in the shape of the“Internet of Things”. The loT is abuzz-phrase used to describe the computerization of everything from cars and electricity meters to  children’s toys, medical devices and light bulbs. In 2015 a group of computer-security researchers demonstrated that it was possible to take remote control of certain Jeep cars. When the Mirai malware is used to build a botnet it seeks out devices such as  video recorders and webcams ; the botnet for fridges is just around the corner.

According to the paragraph, why did ‘the hacker god’ decide to perform a public service?

Accepted Answer

The paragraph states 'the hacker god' wanted to demonstrate the ease of hacking. Option 2 directly reflects this motivation, indicating a public display of skill.

Question 6

The dire need of amusement toescape boredommade him cultivate various hobbies.

Accepted Answer

The phrase 'to escape boredom' is grammatically correct, using the infinitive form to express purpose. The original sentence is correct, so no change is needed.

Question 7

Directions (Qs 1-10): Which of the phrases given against the sentences should replace the word/ phrase given in
bold
in the sentence to make it grammatically correct? If the sentence is correctas it is given and no correction is required, select ‘No correction required’ as the answer.

The indigenous and ingenious boat-making tradition that once thrived in India, is now wellits way by.

Accepted Answer

The idiom 'on its way out' means something is declining or becoming obsolete. This fits the context of a tradition that 'once thrived' but is now fading.

Question 8

We were credibly informed that the Conman hasgave himselfto the police.

Accepted Answer

The phrasal verb 'give up' means to surrender or hand oneself over to authority. This fits the context of a conman surrendering to the police.

Question 9

Directions (Qs 1-10): Which of the phrases given against the sentences should replace the word/ phrase given in
bold
in the sentence to make it grammatically correct? If the sentence is correctas it is given and no correction is required, select ‘No correction required’ as the answer.

The research team, which includes some well-known names, is very optimistic,in the process.

Accepted Answer

The adjective 'optimistic' is correctly followed by the preposition 'about' when referring to the subject of optimism. This forms the standard idiomatic phrase.

Question 10

Directions (Qs 1-10): Read the following passage carefully and answer the  questions given below it.Certain words are given in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions.
Over a couple of days in February, hundreds of thousands of point-of-sale printers in restaurants around the world began behaving strangely. Some churned out bizarre pictures  of computers and giant robots signed, “with love from the hacker God himself. Some informed their owners that, “YOUR PRINTER HAS BEEN PWND’D”.Some told them, “For the love of God, please close this port”. When the hacker God gave an interview to  Motherboard, a technology website, he claimed to be a British secondary-school pupil by the name of“Stack overflowing”. Annoyed by the
parlous
state of computer security, he had, he claimed, decided to perform a public service by demon starting just how easy it was  to seize control.
Not all hackers are so public spirited, and 2016 was a bonanza for those who are not. In February of that year cyber -crooks stole
$
\$
$
81 m directly from the central bank of Bangladesh—and would have got away with more were it not  for a crucial
typo
.In August America’s National Security Agency (NSA)saw its own hacking tools leaked all over the internet by a group calling themselves the Shadow Brokers.(The C1A suffered a similar indignity this March,) In October a piece of  software called Mirai was used to flood Dyn, an internet infrastructure company, with so much meaningless traffic that websites such as Twitter and Reddit were made inaccessible to many users. And the hacking of the Democratic National Committee’s e- mail servers and the
subsequent
leaking of embarrassing communications seems to have been part of an attempt to influence the outcome of the American elections.
Away from matters of great scale and grand strategy, most hacking is either show-off  vandalism or simply criminal. It is also increasingly easy. Obscure forum soil the trade in stolen credit-card details, sold in batches of thousands at a time. Data-dealers hawk“exploits”: flaws in code that allow malicious attackers to
subvert
systems.You can also buy “ransomware”,with which to encrypt photos and documents on victims’ computers before charging them for the key that will unscramble the data. So sophisticated are these facilitating markets that coding skills are now entirely optional.  Botnets—flocks of compromised computers created by software like Mirai, which can then be used to flood websites with traffic, knocking them offline until a ransom is paid—can be rented by the hour. Just like a legitimate business, the bot-herders will, for a  few dollars extra, provide technical support if anything goes wrong.The total cost of all this hacking is anyone’s guess (most small attacks, and many big ones, go unreported).But all agree it is likely to rise, because the scope for
malice
is  about to expand remarkably.“We are building a world-sized robot,” says Bruce Schneier, a security analyst, in the shape of the“Internet of Things”. The loT is abuzz-phrase used to describe the computerization of everything from cars and electricity meters to  children’s toys, medical devices and light bulbs. In 2015 a group of computer-security researchers demonstrated that it was possible to take remote control of certain Jeep cars. When the Mirai malware is used to build a botnet it seeks out devices such as  video recorders and webcams ; the botnet for fridges is just around the corner.

According to the paragraph, what caused the websites like ‘twitter and reddit’ inaccessible to the users?

Accepted Answer

The paragraph explicitly states that the inaccessibility of websites like Twitter and Reddit was caused by Dyn, an infrastructure company. This is a direct recall from the text.

Question 11

We tempted Karen with many promises but nothing wouldworkedher up.

Accepted Answer

The sentence requires a phrasal verb 'work on' to mean 'to influence or persuade'. The past tense 'would' indicates the base form of the verb is needed.

Question 12

Directions (Qs 1-10): Which of the phrases given against the sentences should replace the word/ phrase given in
bold
in the sentence to make it grammatically correct? If the sentence is correctas it is given and no correction is required, select ‘No correction required’ as the answer.

Curiosity has played important rolearound advancementof the human species.

Accepted Answer

The phrase 'in the advancement' correctly completes the sentence, indicating curiosity's role in human progress. It fits grammatically and semantically.

Question 13

The soil of Indiasaw growthsof one of the oldest culture in the world that is the Harappan Civilization.

Accepted Answer

The original sentence uses 'saw growth', which is grammatically incorrect. The correct phrase is 'saw the growth' to indicate a specific historical event.

Question 14

Directions (Qs 1-10): Which of the phrases given against the sentences should replace the word/ phrase given in
bold
in the sentence to make it grammatically correct? If the sentence is correctas it is given and no correction is required, select ‘No correction required’ as the answer.

The role of banks in economic development is toremoved deficitof capital by stimulating savings and investment.

Accepted Answer

The phrase 'is to' requires an infinitive verb form (to + base verb). 'Remove' is the correct base form, making 'remove the deficiency' grammatically sound.

Question 15

A renowned organisation hasrecent appointeda highly acclaimed scientist to head new research and development assistant.

Accepted Answer

The correct structure for present perfect tense with an adverb like 'recently' is 'has/have + adverb + past participle'. Option 1 follows this rule perfectly.

Question 16

Directions (Qs 1-10): Which of the phrases given against the sentences should replace the word/ phrase given in
bold
in the sentence to make it grammatically correct? If the sentence is correctas it is given and no correction is required, select ‘No correction required’ as the answer.

During the carnival anyone can set up a temporary restaurant in their backyard orat streetand sell their specialities to passers-by.

Accepted Answer

The phrase 'down the street' correctly indicates a location along a street where a temporary restaurant can be set up. It implies a general location on the street.

Question 17

The serene lush green slope of the hill stationmake it up idealvenue for the meditation camp.

Accepted Answer

The subject 'slope' is singular, so the verb must be 'makes'. Also, 'an ideal venue' is the correct article usage for a singular noun starting with a vowel sound.

Question 18

Directions (Qs 1-10): Which of the phrases given against the sentences should replace the word/ phrase given in
bold
in the sentence to make it grammatically correct? If the sentence is correctas it is given and no correction is required, select ‘No correction required’ as the answer.

A team of European scientists placed a spacecraft into orbit around Mars tohunt for signsof life below.

Accepted Answer

The original sentence uses 'tohunt' which is grammatically incorrect. The correct form for expressing purpose is 'to hunt' (infinitive). Option 5, 'to hunt', correctly completes the sentence.

Question 19

Directions (Qs 8-10): Choose the word/group of words which is most
similar
in meaning to the word/group of words printed in
bold
as used in the passage.

Select the word most SIMILAR in meaning to the given word.

Subsequent

Accepted Answer

'Subsequent' means coming after something in time or order. 'Consequent' means following as a result or effect, making it the closest synonym.

Question 20

Taking good care of yourself is paramountfor successionof your goals.

Accepted Answer

The phrase 'paramount to' is the correct idiom, meaning 'of utmost importance for'. 'Succession' is incorrect; 'success' is the right noun here. Thus, 'to the success' fits best.