Risk appetite is the amount and type of risk that an organization is willing to accept in pursuit of its objectives. Risk appetite can be expressed in qualitative or quantitative terms, and can vary depending on the context and the stakeholder. Risk appetite should be defined and communicated by the senior management or the board of directors, and should guide the risk management decisions and actions throughout the organization. When a project team has accepted a risk outside the established risk appetite, the risk practitioner's best course of action is to escalate the risk decision to the project sponsor for review, meaning that the risk practitioner should report the risk acceptance and its rationale to the project sponsor, who is the person or group that provides the resources and support for the project, and is accountable for its success. The project sponsor should review the risk decision and determine whether it is aligned with the organization's objectives and strategy, and whether it requires any further approval or action. References = Risk and Information Systems Control Study Manual, Chapter 1, Section 1.3.1, p. 25-26

Key control indicators (KCIs) are metrics that provide information on the extent to which a given control is meeting its intended objectives in terms of loss prevention, reduction, etc. In order to provide such information, the control effectiveness indicator has to have an explicit relationship to both the specific control and to the specific risk against which the control has been implemented1. Therefore, the best source for identifying KCIs is to use controls mapped to organizational risk scenarios, which can help define the control objectives, the expected outcomes, and the relevant indicators for each risk scenario. This approach can also help align the KCIs with the organizational goals and strategy, and enable the monitoring and reporting of the control effectiveness23.
The other options are not the best sources for identifying KCIs, because:
* Privileged user activity monitoring controls are specific types of controls that aim to prevent unauthorized access or misuse of sensitive data or systems by privileged users. They are not a source for identifying KCIs, but rather a possible subject of KCIs. For example, a KCI for this type of control could be the number of privileged user accounts that have not been reviewed or revoked within a specified period4.
* Recent audit findings of control weaknesses are useful for identifying the gaps or deficiencies in the existing control environment, and for recommending corrective actions or improvements. However, they are not a source for identifying KCIs, but rather an input for evaluating or revising the existing KCIs. For example, if an audit finding reveals that a control is not operating as intended, or that a KCI is not providing reliable or timely information, then the control or the KCI may need to be modified or replaced5.
* A list of critical security processes is a high-level overview of the key activities or functions that are
* essential for maintaining the security of the organization's assets and information. It is not a source for identifying KCIs, but rather a starting point for defining the control objectives and requirements. For example, a critical security process could be incident response, which requires a set of controls to ensure the timely and effective detection, containment, analysis, and recovery of security incidents. The KCIs for this process could be the number of incidents detected, the average time to resolve incidents, or the percentage of incidents that resulted in data breaches6.
References =
* Key Control Indicator (KCI) - CIO Wiki
* How to Develop Key Control Indicators to Improve Security Risk Monitoring - Gartner
* Indicators - Program Evaluation - CDC
* Privileged User Monitoring: What Is It and Why Is It Important? - LogRhythm
* Internal Audit Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) - AuditBoard
* Hierarchy of Controls - NIOSH - CDC

Section: Volume C
Explanation:
Blame culture should be avoided. It is the most effective inhibitor of relevant and efficient communication. In a blame culture, business units tend to point the finger at IT when projects are not delivered on time or do not meet expectations. In doing so, they fail to realize how the business unit's involvement up front affects project success. In extreme cases, the business unit may assign blame for a failure to meet the expectations that the unit never clearly communicated. Executive leadership must identify and quickly control a blame culture if collaboration is to be fostered throughout the enterprise.
Incorrect Answers:
A: This is the consequence of poor risk communication, not the inhibitor of effective communication.
B: This is the consequence of poor risk communication, not the inhibitor of effective communication.
D: Misalignment between real risk appetite and translation into policies is an inhibitor of effective communication, but is not a prominent as existence of blame culture.

Section: Volume B
Explanation:
The internal environment for risk management is the foundational level of the COSO ERM framework, which describes the philosophical basics of managing risks within the implementing enterprise. The different aspects of the internal environment include the enterprise's:
* Philosophy on risk management
* Risk appetite
* Attitudes of Board of Directors
* Integrity and ethical values
* Commitment to competence
* Organizational structure
* Authority and responsibility
* Human resource standards

The best evidence of an effective risk treatment plan is that the risk tolerance threshold is above the asset residual risk, because this means that the risk treatment plan has reduced the risk to a level that is acceptable to the enterprise. The risk tolerance threshold is the maximum amount of risk that the enterprise is willing to accept for a given asset or process. The asset residual risk is the remaining risk after applying the risk treatment plan. The risk treatment plan is effective if the asset residual risk is lower than or equal to the risk tolerance threshold. The other options are not the best evidence, although they may also be indicators of an effective risk treatment plan. The inherent risk being below the asset residual risk, the remediation cost being below the asset business value, and the remediation being completed within the asset recovery time objective (RTO) are examples of desirable or expected outcomes of the risk treatment plan, but they do not directly measure the effectiveness of the risk treatment plan. References = CRISC: Certified in Risk & Information Systems Control Sample Questions