Millions of people today are working without the VPN security and privacy tools needed to protect business data from threats. Accessing critical work-related data over the internet with no safeguards puts organizations and users at risk. Implementing business VPNs is a straightforward and important approach to making online activities as possible.

What is a Business VPN?

When employees work on-site, they can connect their laptops or mobile devices directly to the company’s internal network. However, when employees work from a remote location, their connection to the internal network takes place over the public–and largely unsafe–internet, potentially exposing their traffic to online hijacking and other methods of stealing sensitive data.

Encrypting the traffic with a business VPN keeps it safe from malicious actors. There are two types of business VPNs: remote access VPNs and site-to-site VPNs. 

A remote access VPN creates a connection between individual users and a business’s internal network. When users need to access the business’s network, they first activate their VPN client, which establishes an encrypted tunnel. The encrypted tunnel allows users to access the internal network securely.

Site-to-site VPNs create a single virtual network that is shared across multiple office locations. Each office location can have multiple individual users. Here, the VPN client is hosted on each office’s internal network instead of on individual users’ devices. This allows users in each office to access the shared network without using a VPN client individually. 

Benefits of Business VPN

• Increased Security – Since business VPNs create a secure tunnel for traffic to flow between users’ devices and the internal network, it increases the security of the business’s data. Business VPNs offer users online anonymity by masking their real IP addresses. Web data cannot be traced back to the user’s device, making it harder for hackers to breach the business’s systems.
• Access Geo-restricted Websites – Websites or databases that support a business’s operations may not be accessible from outside the country. A business VPN will bypass geo-blocking by altering the access request which will appear to be originating from an IP address that’s in an unrestricted location. A business VPN masks the true location to maintain open access.
• Affordability – Business VPNs are an affordable option to keep business data and users safe. Prices vary but most options are affordable. Many VPN services cost under USD 10 per user, per month.

Mobile Device Management for Business VPNs

The use of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets has become ubiquitous at work. Users work during their daily commutes, and replying to emails or accessing files on the business’s server using public Wi-Fi makes mobile devices vulnerable to data breaches. Installing business VPNs on mobile devices becomes non-negotiable to protect data.

But one of the biggest challenges businesses face is the deployment of VPNs on every mobile device. For large companies with thousands of employees (and devices), installing a VPN app on each device is simply not practical. Businesses can use their iOS mobile device management solution  to configure VPN settings on devices.

Businesses can create a VPN connection, choose how the VPN authenticates, and select the server type using the MDM solution. MDM providers such as Scalefusion support companies to choose a third-party VPN provider.

Wrapping Up

To protect a business’s network in today’s distributed environment where users can work from on-site or remote locations there are many tools and technologies available for protecting sensitive corporate information from bad actors. There isn’t one single solution that handles every risk present. The goal for businesses should be to take proactive measures that reduce vulnerabilities or seal gaps to prevent any exploits. Large businesses that have a remote and on-site work model should look into device management with business VPN offerings.