Which acronym represents the five GAO internal control standards?

Which acronym represents the five GAO internal control standards?

• A. CRIME
• B. MICE
• C. TRACE
• D. GAMES

Answer: (A)

CRIME is the mnemonic used to remember the GAO internal control standards: Control Environment, Risk Assessment, Information and Communication, Monitoring, and Control Activities. Each component supports a functioning internal control system: the Control Environment sets the ethical tone and foundation; Risk Assessment identifies and analyzes risks that could prevent objectives from being met; Information and Communication ensures timely, relevant information reaches the right people; Monitoring provides ongoing evaluations to detect deficiencies; and Control Activities are the policies and procedures that prevent or detect errors and achieve objectives. Because these five elements are the GAO standards, CRIME is the best representation of them. The other strings don’t map to the GAO framework and thus aren’t the standard mnemonic.

CRIME is the mnemonic used to remember the GAO internal control standards: Control Environment, Risk Assessment, Information and Communication, Monitoring, and Control Activities. Each component supports a functioning internal control system: the Control Environment sets the ethical tone and foundation; Risk Assessment identifies and analyzes risks that could prevent objectives from being met; Information and Communication ensures timely, relevant information reaches the right people; Monitoring provides ongoing evaluations to detect deficiencies; and Control Activities are the policies and procedures that prevent or detect errors and achieve objectives. Because these five elements are the GAO standards, CRIME is the best representation of them. The other strings don’t map to the GAO framework and thus aren’t the standard mnemonic.