Blog
5 Key Benefits of Using VPN Connections for Remote Work and Online Privacy
April 19, 2023
Industry Commentary
The era of globalization brought with it a remote work culture where people from different locations found employment in organizations in another part of the world. The most notable example today is the enormous number of Indian citizens working for western multi-national corporations. With the advent of the global pandemic, remote work via online portals became even more prominent. The time zone differences between locations, access to country-specific portals, and concerns about the security of sensitive data are common problems with remote work, especially for across countries. This is where a virtual private network (VPN) enters the picture.
In simple terms, a VPN can be understood as an encrypted network link between two points. To elaborate, it is a secured online tunnel that protects user data such as the IP address. With the rise of the global remote work culture the need for VPNs increased quickly because companies grew cautious of the data they were sharing with employees working in distant locations. When a VPN is established between a device and a network the data journey is protected; this is referred to as secure remote access. Given how data-centric businesses have become, along with the demand for faster and more robust VPN networks, concerns over online privacy are growing.Currently, there are four types of VPN services available: Remote Access VPN, Site-to-Site VPN, Mobile VPN, and Personal VPN.
All these have different uses, but with the shared purpose of facilitating smooth and secure remote work. Via remote access VPN, employees are able to gain secure access to their organization's private network during remote work. In some instances, a mobile VPN is considered when there is a heavily disturbed or unstable internet connection at the employees’ end.
A site-to-site VPN is relevant for an organization with multiple branches or sister companies where there is a requirement for building encrypted links between two or more networks, for example in the case of a corporate network and a branch office network. Personal VPN as the name suggests is only for the use of an individual and is not considered for business use.
The use of VPNs for business purposes is useful for remote work and maintaining the online privacy of data. A study carried out by Statista concluded that in 2022 alone the VPN market stood at a staggering 44.6 billion U.S. dollars with corporate entities being their number one customers. This is due to the advantages virtual private networking services have to offer for remote work and online privacy.
Companies have transitioned from being paper-based to now being dependent almost completely on digital content. With remote work culture on the rise, online usage is also surging and a lot is at stake. Therefore, it is imperative for organizations to use a virtual private network service that not only fits their company requirements but also ensures robust cyber security. As per RiskRecon between 2020 and 2021 cyber-attacks on small companies surged by more than 150%. A sound VPN can efficiently protect IP addresses, provide stringent data encryption, and block network breaches.
A VPN efficiently isolates sensitive data from any external threats by establishing an end-to-end encrypted connection only between the colleagues and offices of an organization. Only internal stakeholders are permitted to have access to the organization’s data. Business VPNs today are so robust and complex that they encrypt the entire internet mainframe, not just the company’s network connections. When any file is uploaded to company email, storage, or to any networks outside the company, it is encrypted by the VPN as well.
Privacy is the basis of any VPN connection, it is fundamental to a good VPN connection. VPN security protects business stakeholders by IP masking and re-routing all sensitive data via a secure connection; this means that a VPN helps to hide private information like geolocation.
Often facilitating seamless remote work management using a virtual private networking system becomes essential. For instance, many websites are not available in other countries but may be important for a remote employee for work purposes. In such cases by replacing their IP address with the company's VPN employees can gain access. This also applies when employees are traveling abroad.
With a VPN connection in place, employees have 24x7 secure access to the database and are able to get their work done with flexibility and agility which in turn enhances overall productivity. Moreover, by using a VPN server, multiple remote workers can have access making expansion for an organization cost effective. Anything from email to full-blown applications that you would normally run on a desktop computer can be shared with everyone in real time within an encrypted cloud setting.
In order to choose the most fitting business friendly VPN system, multiple factors can be considered that may vary from one company to another depending on the use case and organizational structure as well as policies. However, some factors remain widely constant while choosing the right VPN connection for remote work and robust online privacy. These include dual compatibility to ensure the remote employees are able to access company databases via desktop and mobile devices; and multi-layer security wherein protocols are set up to configure speed, server locations, provisions for cascading two or more VPN servers together.
Another important factor is centralized management whereby IT admins and team managers are able to grant or halt access, remove accounts as well as monitor device employees. Additionally, VPNs with stringent logging policies pose a safer stance by setting defined session times, segmented information storage, internal transparency, etc.
Given the complexities and workload involved for business VPNs, factors such as prompt customer support from the VPN service provider and enterprise standard infrastructure are also crucial. US-based Uplevel Systems brings over a decade’s worth of experience and expertise in providing reliable VPN services which are trusted by many MSMEs across the globe.
In light of everything said above, a business with a remote workforce that is concerned about online privacy must choose a robust and efficient VPN solution that guards the organization's data against cyber threats and safeguards employees. Uplevel Systems is recommended by various MSMEs globally for its security, accessibility, flexibility, and efficiency for businesses.
Uplevel Systems, as a small business IT infrastructure managed service provider, enables any of these options. Uplevel’s subscription offering is the most popular with SMBs, but some prefer Uplevel’s new equipment purchase program and use a CapEx model.
