These unprecedented data breaches were game-changing in their size and scope, but at a more fundamental level, they were reminders that today’s security departments still have not mastered the basic “blocking and tackling” of data protection. The Adobe breach exposed the weaknesses of the password system and the failures of current, outdated forms of authentication. China’s attacks on the media pointed out enterprises’ vulnerability to social engineering and the inability of current systems to detect sophisticated malware.

These fundamental failures exposed the weaknesses of defenses that rely primarily on technology as the most important line of defense. They were setbacks of epic proportions – but sometimes it takes such setbacks to force an industry to think differently. And there is good reason to believe that such a shift is beginning now, and that the wave of new thinking will continue to rise rapidly in the New Year.

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