![]() There is no scrutiny of the security posture of the connecting device, which could allow malware to enter the network. Simply put, providing security for VPN traffic is expensive and complex to manage.Īnother issue with VPNs is that they provide overly broad access to the entire network without the option of controlling granular user access to specific resources. In addition to inefficient routing and increased network latency, this can result in having to purchase, deploy, monitor, and maintain security stacks at multiple sites to decentralize the security load. To maintain security, the traffic must be routed through a security stack at its terminus on the network. While the tunnel itself is encrypted, the traffic traveling within that tunnel is not inspected for malware or other threats. Security is a considerable concern when VPNs are used. It was a real challenge to quickly scale capacity because the number of required VPN links for continuous connectivity scales exponentially with the number of remote sites. Once the pandemic restrictions forced people to isolate at home, companies saw their VPN usage shoot up to as much as 50 to 70 percent of the workforce. This supported employees temporarily working from hotels and customer sites as well as from their homes. Pre-pandemic, many organizations had sufficient VPN capacity to support between 10 and 20 percent of their workforce as short-duration remote users at any given time. VPN visibility is limited when companies deploy multiple disparate appliances. Each terminating appliance has a finite capacity for simultaneous users. ![]() The VPN software creates a virtual private tunnel over which the user’s traffic goes from Point A (e.g., the home office or a remote work location) to Point B (usually a terminating appliance in a corporate datacenter). For people working from home, this path is going to be the public Internet. Each secure connection between two points requires its own VPN link for routing traffic over an existing path. VPNs are designed for point-to-point connectivity. Enterprise VPN Solutions are Not Designed for Distributed Workforces As organizations contemplate an extended or even permanent switch to WFH, investing in a secure, scalable connectivity solution is essential. However, VPN infrastructure isn’t designed to support an entire workforce. In the early days of Coronavirus lockdowns, some countries saw a surge in VPN use that more than doubled the typical pre-pandemic demand. Many companies turned to their existing VPN infrastructure, beefing up the terminating appliances in the datacenter with additional capacity to support hundreds or thousands of new work from home (WFH) users. To keep business functioning as best as possible, enterprises need to provide secure remote connectivity to the corporate network and cloud-based resources for their remote workers. The process happened suddenly – almost overnight – giving companies little time to prepare for so many people to work remotely. The global pandemic has forced many organizations around the world to send their workers home to support social distancing mandates. ![]()
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