IBPS and Banking IT Officer Interview Questions India 2026: Computer Knowledge, Banking Domain, and Interview Prep

IBPS SO IT Officer selection process:

Preliminary Exam: Reasoning Ability (50Q), English Language (25Q), Quantitative Aptitude (50Q). Qualification only.

Main Exam (Professional Knowledge - IT): 60 questions, 60 marks, 45 minutes. Major topics:

• Networking: OSI model, TCP/IP layers, IP addressing, firewalls, VPN, network security (IDS/IPS)
• DBMS: RDBMS concepts, SQL (JOINs, aggregation, subqueries), normalisation (1NF-3NF, BCNF), ACID properties, indexing
• Operating Systems: process and thread management, CPU scheduling, deadlocks, memory management (paging, segmentation, virtual memory)
• Information Security: cryptography (symmetric: AES/DES; asymmetric: RSA), SSL/TLS, digital signatures, PKI, common attacks (SQL injection, phishing, man-in-the-middle, ransomware)
• Programming: OOPs concepts, data structures (arrays, linked lists, trees, graphs, heaps)
• Banking technology: CBS (Core Banking System: Finacle, BankMaster, TCS BaNCS), SWIFT, RTGS, NEFT, UPI architecture, IMPS, PCI DSS compliance

Interview (100 marks): Typically 15-20 minutes. Panel of 3-5 members. Questions on professional knowledge, academic background, and banking domain awareness.

Computer knowledge questions:

1. 'What is the difference between TCP and UDP?' TCP: connection-oriented; reliable; ordered; slower. Use for HTTP, email, FTP, banking transactions. UDP: connectionless; no guaranteed delivery; faster; use for DNS, video streaming, VoIP.
2. 'What are ACID properties?' Atomicity (all-or-nothing), Consistency (valid state to valid state), Isolation (concurrent transactions appear serial), Durability (committed data survives crashes). Critical for banking: a fund transfer must atomically debit one account and credit another.
3. 'What is two-factor authentication?' 2FA requires: something you know (password/PIN) + something you have (OTP to registered mobile). RBI mandates 2FA for all internet banking transactions in India.

Banking technology domain questions:

1. 'What is Core Banking System (CBS)?' CBS: centralised banking software that processes all bank transactions in real time across all branches. Before CBS: each branch maintained its own records. With CBS: any transaction at any branch (or ATM or mobile) updates the central database in real time. Popular CBS platforms in India: Finacle (Infosys, used by SBI, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank), TCS BaNCS, BankMaster (Temenos).

2. 'What is the difference between RTGS, NEFT, IMPS, and UPI?' RTGS: Real Time Gross Settlement; for large-value transactions (minimum Rs. 2 lakh); settles individually in real time; available 24/7. NEFT: National Electronic Funds Transfer; no minimum/maximum amount; settles in half-hourly batches; 24/7. IMPS: Immediate Payment Service; up to Rs. 5 lakh; instant (24/7/365); the backbone for UPI transactions. UPI: Unified Payments Interface; built on IMPS rails; mobile-first; uses VPA (Virtual Payment Address) instead of IFSC + account number.

3. 'What is PCI DSS?' PCI DSS: Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard; security standards for organisations handling credit card data. For banking IT officers: ensures cardholder data is stored, processed, and transmitted securely; prevents card fraud. Compliance requirements: encrypt cardholder data in transit and at rest, maintain a vulnerability management program, restrict access to cardholder data on a need-to-know basis.