When organizations gain a broader perspective on cyber threats, they become less reliant on preventive technologies that are easily evaded by sophisticated attackers. They instead turn their attention to identifying and protecting their most important information assets. They invest their security resources in technical and procedural solutions that result in a faster detection of attacks and quicker responses to them.

Some organizations may believe they are unlikely targets of cyber attacks. Consider, though, that attackers often wage cyber attacks against companies in order to get at their business partners.

Cyber attackers prey on the vulnerabilities of our digital connections and are often far more aware of those vulnerabilities than we are ourselves.

In 2013, cyber security will continue to be challenged in the following ways:

Hackers are more likely to become even more sophisticated.

Our attack surfaces will expand and any remaining semblance of a perimeter will continue to wither.

Changes will occur whether security teams are ready or not.

Governments will continue to struggle to write rules concerning evidence, information sharing and the reform of privacy laws.

Nation states will continue to move past intrusion and deliberately attempt to disrupt and destroy.

Responsible people in organizations will move beyond being aware of the seriousness of the situation and obtain a genuine understanding of it.

Adopting an intelligence-based security model that includes big data and analytics will prove essential in the formation of a true defense-in-depth strategy.

This year will be one to witness our efforts toward achieving greater cooperation. The continued growth of our interconnected global economies will depend on it.

The author is the executive chairman of RSA, the security civision of EMC.