We should all agree that cybersecurity is more important than ever, especially after the coronavirus outbreak. And surely, it will gain more importance over time. Cybersecurity is essential not only for individuals but also for companies and organizations. In this modern world, we store so much sensitive data in clouds, transfer money online, and leave digital fingerprints all over the internet.
That is why a breach, an attack, or a cyberthreat may damage individuals and companies in different ways such as losing money, losing reputation, and leaking of sensitive personal data. However, there are strong and effective solutions to these problems. For example, Virtual Private Networks — VPNs. Actually, VPN may be the first solution that comes to mind when talking about cybersecurity. It is used by millions of individuals and it is shown that they are effective.
But, what about companies? Even though VPNs are generally used by individuals, they provide effective solutions for companies too and are used widely in corporate environments. Since VPNs allow individuals to securely connect to a company’s internal network, they provide comprehensive security. In this article, we will explain how a VPN works, and why companies need to utilize a remote VPN solution.
What is Virtual Private Network — VPN?
A VPN is a technology that allows users to maintain their confidentiality, safety, and anonymity by converting a public internet connection into a private network and disguising your Internet Protocol — IP address. VPN services create encrypted, private connections, and this process makes it much harder to track your online activity.
The encrypted connection ensures the security of sensitive data which allows the user to operate remotely and prevents unknown individuals from monitoring the transmission.
Remote Access VPN
Remote Access VPN provides companies with network security by establishing virtual tunnel interfaces between network components and an external device or user. Since the traffic is encrypted, remote users can safely access and use their organization’s network as if they are in the office and the data transferred via remote access VPN can not be accessed by third parties or monitored.
By encrypting all data sent and received by the users, a remote access VPN allows users who are working from home to safely access and utilize apps and data that are housed in the company offices and database servers. Remote Access VPN has two main aspects: A VPN client, which is on the user’s device, and a VPN gateway, which is located at the perimeter of the network.
Reasons to Use a Remote Access VPN
As work-from-home policies become more popular and hybrid work models become more common, an effective and comprehensive cybersecurity solution such as remote access VPN offers a variety of benefits to companies. But, before we talk about its benefits, we will first take a look at the main reasons why using a VPN is essential in corporate environments.
Provides Enhanced Security
All companies store sensitive data and private information that they should protect. To this end, a data breach can cause considerable damage and a company might be held accountable. However, a VPN encrypts all data exchanged between your employees and your corporate network and secures data transmission. Remote Access VPN offers a stable authentication process that allows only authorized users access to the corporate network.
Allows Remote Access
As said above, the remote work models are now seen as the new normal and it seems like they will stay in our lives from now on. This makes securing remote access more important. With remote access VPNs employees can access corporate data from numerous places which offers a secure alternative and allows companies to recruit talented individuals from all around the world.
Encrypts Transmitted Data
No matter the device or location, all sent data is fully protected with the use of tunneling protocols and data encryption. This allows only authorized connections and users can access corporate data. Your information would be unusable even if someone managed to access it.
Benefits of Remote Access VPN
Since we talked about reasons why a company needs a remote access VPN, we can now talk about the benefits of implementing this solution. Utilizing remote access VPNs has several benefits, especially in today’s largely digital corporate environment.
- Accessing Geo-Blocked Content: Certain databases or websites cannot interact with your company in some regions due to geoblocking technologies. Bypassing these restrictions will enable your company to connect with customers easily.
- Network Scalability: With the use of VPNs, a company may quickly connect dispersed networks over the open Internet via encrypted routes. By doing this, a company may simply grow its network while still managing to keep it as a single, private network.
- Access Control: VPNs control access through user authentication and authorization
- Network Performance: VPNs provide a range of speed choices to support various functions like P2P sharing, streaming, etc.
- Safe File-Sharing: Employees may safely transfer files among themselves while avoiding the danger of disclosing company data to third parties by using a VPN.
- Convenience for remote employees: Employees attempting to access corporate data from different places may do it easily and safely with the help of VPNs.
- Content Filtering: VPNs safeguard individuals and systems by blocking malicious content like phishing and malware websites.
- Reliability: VPNs offer each user the same level of connection quality even when it is processing its maximum number of simultaneous connections.
Final notes
Data protection plays an important role in today’s world. Since they can result in loss of money and reputation, increasing cyberattacks are becoming the biggest concern of companies. However, with adequate tools, a company can secure sensitive data and prevent breaches.
VPNs are seen as the first step to cybersecurity and they have so much to offer. They are getting more advanced each day and offer effective solutions. Additionally, they cost less than most cybersecurity solutions, easy to both implement and use.
But you should keep in mind that not every VPN may be suitable for your company and you should avoid using free VPNs for business purposes.
