If your company is running legacy VPNs, our consultants recommend upgrading or even replacing them. Here are 5 reasons you should stop using legacy VPNs.
What is a VPN?
VPN, standing for Virtual Private Network, is a service that protects your internet connection and privacy online. VPNs conceal the user’s real IP address and tunnel traffic between the user’s device and the remote server.
1 Slow
Virtual private networks (VPNs) are a great way to protect your privacy and security when you’re connected to the internet. However, legacy VPNs can be slow, which can make it difficult for businesses to perform. There are a few reasons why legacy VPNs can perform slowly. First, legacy VPNs frequently use outdated encryption algorithms. These algorithms are more computationally costly than newer algorithms, which can slow down the VPN connection. Second, legacy VPNs usually route all traffic through a central server. This can also add latency to the connection, especially if the server is located far away from the user. Thirdly, legacy VPNs often have a small number of servers. This can lead to congestion during peak times, which can further slowdown the connection.
2 Not secure
Legacy VPNs are not as secure as they once were. They often use outdated encryption algorithms, and these algorithms are more susceptible to attack than newer algorithms. Second, they often have a single point of failure. This means that if the VPN server is compromised, all the data that is being transmitted through the VPN is at risk. Finally, legacy VPNs often do not have a strong authentication system in place. This means that it is relatively easy for attackers to gain access to the VPN network if they wanted.
3 Difficult to manage
Legacy VPNs are difficult to manage, pose security risks and operational problems. For example, if each person working from home needs to connect to a corporate VPN, they will need to set up specialist software. Also, as they are outside the office, IT staff cannot simply sit at their desk and enter the VPN configuration. If this is entered incorrectly, the connection may fail or become compromised. Contrast that with simply providing users with a web address and password to log in to a cloud-based service. You can start to acknowledge why legacy VPNs are not the best way forward.
4 Bandwidth overload
Bandwidth overloads can lead to performance problems and even service outages. Most devices are always connected to the VPN, but VPNs were never originally intended for continuous use. Every time a device connects to the VPN server, bandwidth will be consumed. More strain will be placed on the server especially if employees are working from home, as they may be accessing things that place a greater strain on the network.
By adding VPN servers closer to users’ locations, you can reduce the chance of bandwidth overload. Site-to-site VPNs are sometimes created by companies and organizations with multiple offices around the world to share resources (and network load) across the entire network. Therefore, there is a way round bandwidth overload.
5 Scalability
Due to the recent surge in VPN usage, many organizations are struggling to keep up. It is common for legacy VPNs to use outdated hardware, which can be a performance bottleneck. Particularly if the VPN hardware can’t handle the increasing number of users and devices connected to it. To reduce network load, it is possible to add more servers, switch to more efficient VPN protocols, set up site-to-site VPNs, and enforce device policies. However, this is extremely time-consuming and expensive.
Furthermore, most VPN server software’s are not designed specifically for enterprise-grade security. This means network admins will have to manually add specific network monitoring and security tools every time a new device is added. This makes it difficult to scale. Consequently, it’s no surprise that many small- and medium-sized businesses are using cloud-based apps. Many of these apps offer different tiers depending on their size, which are much more scalable.
Speak to us
If you feel your business needs help regarding your legacy VPN, our senior consultants will be happy to help. They will assess your current setup and systems and advise what will be the best plan of action tailored to your business. This way your business receives a customised report on what systems will best suit your culture and setup. Contact us today to discover how we can help you.