How to choose a corporate VPN client
Publié le 03/3/2022
Auteur : Arnaud Dufournet, Chief Marketing Officer
The recently published CESIN Corporate Cybersecurity Barometer, conducted by the French market research firm OpinionWay, reveals that 54% of the businesses surveyed suffered at least one attack in 2021. “60% of those who experienced an attack said their business was affected, mainly due to a disruption in production or to compromised information.”
As they are becoming increasingly aware of the risks, businesses have begun to review their security measures to raise the standard of their cyber resilience. According to the barometer, more than 10 solutions were deployed on average, with the use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) coming out on top. VPNs remain an essential technology when it comes to securing remote connections to corporate information systems, especially for employees who work from home or are frequently on the road. However, faced with an increasingly diverse offer, how should businesses go about choosing a robust corporate VPN client?
A corporate VPN is different from VPN services
Considering the plethora of offers on the market, making the right choice may not be that easy at first glance. If you turn to Google to start your search, you will see countless lists ranking “the best VPNs” come up in the results.
“Very useful!”, you might think. Well not really, because in fact all these rankings compare “VPN services” such as NordVPN, CyberGhost, Surfshark, PureVPN, etc.
None of these VPNs are corporate VPNs. Bear in mind that a VPN service is primarily aimed at private individuals who want to hide their IP address and remain anonymous (see our article VPN service/corporate VPN: what’s the difference?).
Whether you run a business or a public organization, regardless of its size, your challenges lie elsewhere and your requirements in terms of security are of another order: securing and authenticating remote access to your information system for employees who work from home or external service providers, securing and controlling access to a restricted part of your information system, protecting communications with connected objects, etc.
Once you eliminate VPN services from your search, what criteria do you need to take into consideration when it comes to choosing a VPN client that can improve the security of your business?
How to choose the right corporate VPN
Here are the three main criteria you need to consider:
- Security level
This criterion is non-negotiable, especially for organizations that operate information systems containing data classified as Restricted (see our use case on Restricted circulation) or who serve as critical market operators or Operators of Essential Services (OSEs). We highly recommend choosing the most up-to-date version of the product for a state-of-the-art encryption algorithm and a robust authentication system. You should also give preference to IPsec VPNs that have received security certifications, because they offer the highest level of security (see our article Why choose IPsec VPNs over SSL/TLS VPNs?). - Flexibility
Opt for the most interoperable VPN possible to stay in control of your choice of hardware. Interoperability gives you the ability to review your choices and easily switch providers. Flexibility also implies the VPN’s ability to interface with all your devices and integrate with your public key infrastructure. It is quite common to have a great variety of network devices following mergers and acquisitions. A VPN that covers all operating systems (Windows, Linux, macOS, iOS, Android) and can handle any type of network (wired, 4G/5G, Wi-Fi, etc.) allows you to meet all your needs in terms of protecting communications. - Ease of use
Put end users first. No protection is effective if users do not adopt the cyber security solution. User experience is therefore of utmost importance. The VPN must be as transparent as possible to users. In other words, it must require minimal interaction. For instance, the “Always-On” feature, which ensures that the connection remains secure whenever the network interface changes, is entirely transparent for the end user. Trusted network detection automatically activates the VPN connection when the user connects to a network that is not controlled by your organization, such as a public Wi-Fi network. The software should also be easy to use for administrators. More specifically, setting up a configuration that complies with your security policy should be an easy task. Last point of attention: deployment. The VPN client must come with tools and installation options that simplify deployment, especially if the number of workstations that need to be protected exceeds several dozen.
Do you want to try the features of TheGreenBow IPsec VPN clients? Nothing could be easier! They can all be downloaded from our website. You will be able to test all their features free of charge for 30 days.
