For years, user VPN has been the standard solution for securely connecting mobile employees to company networks. However, this approach has significant disadvantages.
A VPN connection usually grants access to the entire network without granular control or detailed monitoring. To avoid redirecting the internet traffic of mobile users via the company network (so-called backhauling), a “local breakout” is often used. This means that the Internet traffic is routed directly via the user’s local network, but this means that it is no longer checked by the company’s security solutions – a significant security gap. In addition, several geographically distributed VPN gateways make the administration and overview of user access more difficult, which increases complexity.
The Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) approach offers a forward-looking alternative that addresses these vulnerabilities. As an integral part of a Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) architecture, ZTNA enables secure and flexible access to company resources. Users connect via the SASE provider’s cloud infrastructure, which enforces the company’s security policies uniformly – regardless of the user’s location.
With ZTNA, external users’ access to internal company resources is regulated securely and granularly without granting access to the entire network: The identity of users is verified, access is continuously monitored and limited to the resources actually required. These security checks are not only carried out when the connection is established, but remain active for the entire duration of the communication.
The advantages are clear: with ZTNA as part of a SASE solution, companies can minimize security risks and improve the user experience at the same time. Disadvantages of classic VPN solutions such as backhauling, increased latency and the burden on VPN gateways are completely eliminated. In addition, the SASE architecture enables simple integration of other security services, such as CASB (Cloud Access Security Broker) to secure SaaS applications, Firewall-as-a-Service, or Secure Web Gateways to protect web access. ZTNA therefore not only offers significant advantages over conventional VPN solutions, but also a scalable, future-proof security architecture for organizations.
Are you considering replacing your VPN architecture with ZTNA? Our security specialists will be happy to advise you. Get in touch with us today!