The Importance of Using VPN for a Business

Here's what we're covering in this article:

• What is a VPN?
• How does a VPN work?
• The commercial VPN
• The internal corporate VPN

The current COVID-19 pandemic is certainly not over yet, but we can still get an idea of ​​some of the developments that will take place in the workplace of the future. Remote working will surely be one of the major changes our societies will experience, with its advantages and challenges. One of the major challenges for SMEs is successfully evolving towards this new way of working while maintaining a high level of security.

As we briefly explained in our last article , a VPN provides protection for your company's network. It's especially important when employees are working remotely or traveling. Today, we'll discuss its importance within your SME.

1. First of all, what is a VPN?

VPN stands for "Virtual Private Network," which literally translates to "Virtual Private Network." Some people will therefore refer to VPNs as VPNs.

Using a VPN allows you to create private networks between remote computers. The benefits of using private networks are numerous and are explained in Section 3 of this article.

The second main characteristic of a VPN is that it encrypts data as it travels to the VPN server; this is called a tunnel connection. It's called this because if the data is intercepted by a third party, they won't be able to gain anything from it. The data is encrypted and therefore unreadable to anyone who doesn't have the decryption key.

The information therefore passes implicitly through a tunnel because it can only be deciphered by users who have the decryption key.

2. How does a VPN work?

First, the data is encrypted by the computer, then sent to the VPN server. The encrypted data is then received by the VPN and decrypted by it. The VPN executes the requests requested by the user.

The VPN then receives the response to these requests (for example, the content of a web page). The request data is then encrypted and sent back to the computer, which decrypts it.

3. There are two different uses of a VPN

The so-called commercial use of a VPN: This is the most widely known use among the general public. It allows, among other things, to hide one's IP address and secure one's internet access.

Using an internal company VPN: A company VPN allows employees to connect to the company network and thus have access to its services without being present on site.

4. The importance of commercial VPN

There are many uses for a commercial VPN. First, it allows you to search the web without revealing your company's IP address. This is a security measure that can prevent, for example, denial of service attacks on your SME's network.

Additionally, VPNs encrypt employees' internet connections, which helps protect against man-in-the-middle attacks . Man-in-the-middle attacks are very common when connecting from public networks, so using a VPN is essential for you and your employees when traveling.

Additionally, a commercial VPN is very useful for connecting to a geo-blocked website. Media outlets are still often blocked. This will allow your colleagues traveling abroad to access their usual news sources.

Finally, along the same lines as the previous point, VPNs allow you to bypass censorship in some of the countries you're likely to travel to. Consider China, which blocks access to some of the most widely used websites in the rest of the world, such as Google and Facebook.

5. The importance of internal company VPN

Using an internal virtual private network is a one-stop shop, but it is of paramount importance when working remotely.

This allows your employees to access your company's intranet resources, regardless of their location on the planet. This includes mail servers, if they are located on your premises, as well as printers or data stored on-site via your file server, for example.

But most importantly, using a business VPN ensures that your remote employees can do so while maintaining the security of your data. So, you're putting the odds in your favor.

Nexxo can help you set up your VPN

We hope you enjoyed this article and found it helpful to understand the importance of a VPN for your business. If you have any questions or would like assistance with setting up your VPN, please contact us .

We would be happy to learn more about your goals and how we can use IT to help you achieve them.

About Nexxo IT Solutions

Nexxo Computer Solutions specializes in providing IT and technology services to Quebec businesses. Its mission is to offer Quebec companies IT services tailored to their needs. Acting as an external IT department, it handles all of a company's IT tasks, allowing it to focus on its business activities. It achieves this by collaborating closely with its clients and putting their interests at the center of its concerns.