UPSC Civil Services Examination, Previous Year Questions (PYQs)

Q1. Consider the following activities: (2020)

1. Spraying pesticides on a crop field
2. Inspecting the craters of active volcanoes
3. Collecting breath samples from spouting whales for DNA analysis

At the present level of technology, which of the above activities can be successfully carried out by using drones?

(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Ans: (d)

Exp:

• Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) or drones are aircrafts that can be navigated without a human pilot on board. Drones can be navigated via control from the ground, using a GPS tracking system.
• Initially, drones have been developed mostly for military applications. However, its use has expanded to scientific, recreational, commercial and other applications including peacekeeping and surveillance, product delivery, aerial photography, agriculture, etc.
• They are now increasingly used to spray pesticides in agricultural fields to protect standing crops from pests. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• Scientists have also been using drones to study active volcanoes. The drone can both collect breath samples and take high-resolution photos of the whales from the air to assess general health conditions. Hence, statements 2 and 3 are correct.
• Therefore, option (d) is the correct answer.

Q2. In India, under cyber insurance for individuals, which of the following benefits are generally covered, in addition to payment for the loss of funds and other benefits? (2020)

1. Cost of restoration of the computer system in case of malware disrupting access to one’s computer.
2. Cost of a new computer if some miscreant wilfully damages it, if proved so.
3. Cost of hiring a specialized consultant to minimize the loss in case of cyber extortion.
4. Cost of defence in the Court of Law if any third party files a suit.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1, 2 and 4 only
(b) 1, 3 and 4 only
(c) 2 and 3 only 
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

Ans: (b)

Exp:

• Cyber Insurance is designed to guard businesses from the potential effects of cyber-attacks. It helps an organisation mitigate risk exposure by offsetting costs, after a cyber-attack/breach has happened. In simple terms, cyber insurance is designed to cover the fees, expenses and legal costs associated with cyber breaches.
• Coverage Includes
  • Response to breach events (notification, call centre service, breach resolution, mitigation services, public relation and crisis management),
  • Investigation & fines including lawyers, professional fees, administration cost etc, hence, 4 is correct
  • Expenses such as forensic, IT audit, crisis management, legal costs, hence, 3 is correct.
  • Privacy & data liability,
  • Loss of personal identifiable information,
  • Loss of corporate confidential info,
  • Network liability such as DDoS Attacks,
  • Multimedia covers including copyright issues,
  • Business Interpretation,
  • Income loss, business interruption cost, system damage and restoration cost, any extra expenses, hence 1 is correct.
  • Cyber theft,
  • Fund transfer frauds,
  • E-theft loss,
  • E-communication loss,
  • Cyber extortion.
• Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

Q3. The terms ‘WannaCry, Petya and EternalBlue’ sometimes mentioned in the news recently are related to (2018)

(a) Exoplanets
(b) Cryptocurrency 
(c) Cyber attacks
(d) Mini satellites

Ans: (c)

Exp:

• Ransomware is a form of malicious software (or malware). Once it takes over the computer, it threatens user to harm, usually by denying access to data. The attacker demands a ransom from the victim, promising to restore access to the data upon payment. WannaCry, Petya and EternalBlue are few of the ransom ware, which created havoc by demanding the victim ransom payment in bit coin (crypto currency).
• Cryptocurrency is a digital currency in which encryption techniques are used to regulate the generation of units of currency and verify the transfer of funds, operating independently of a central bank.
• Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.