VPNs - Are You Really Secure?

You Thought Your VPN was Totally Secure…Think Again

VPNs are now the method of choice for most corporations when it comes to remote access. Unfortunately, many enterprises believe their VPN will completely secure remote access to sensitive corporate data from would be crackers. The fact is, however, that users accessing a VPN through an Internet connection often overlook the exposure that they create for the enterprise. There has been a substantial increase in the number and types of internet based attacks to subvert end user machines. In the past such attacks were carried out by a select group of highly skilled crackers. Now with the advent of easy to use cracking scripts there is a new type of threat, the Script Kiddies. With a few scripts and little knowledge the teenager next door could be trying to crack your machine.

Once they have control of your machine they will usually install Trojans such as NetBus, Back Orifice, and QAZ to allow them complete undetectable remote control of a system or general mischief type programs such as viruses. The Trojan can then capture a VPN users password and send it to the cracker. Once they have this password your "secure" VPN is no longer preventing unauthorized access. These types of security holes are a prime target for hackers seeking access to confidential data. Unless properly protected, any mobile or remote computer in a distributed enterprise environment can unwittingly expose the corporate network to data corruption and theft. Giving this growing sector of the workforce the tools to be productive while retaining corporate security control continues to be an ongoing challenge for IT departments everywhere. It is clear that a totally secure VPN is just an illusion.

 

What can be done? How do you solve this problem?

The Sygate® VPN Enforcer™, as part of the Sygate Secure Enterprise Suite, was developed to meet the specific needs of securing mobile and remote workforce computing. This software package successfully protects the VPN from intrusion attempts; securing corporate data from unauthorized network access and corruption. The Sygate Secure Enterprise Suite consists of:

• Sygate Management Server - Used by administrators to create security policies that can be deployed across the corporate network, Sygate Management Server saves IT time and resources by making policy formation simple.
• Sygate Security Agent - Installed on every end user platform and server, Sygate Security Agent enforces policy created in and downloaded from Sygate Management Server.
• Sygate VPN Enforcer - Working in tandem with your corporate VPN server, Sygate VPN Enforcer ensures that only computers running a proper profile of Sygate Security Agent can access the corporate network through a VPN.
• Sygate Wireless Enforcer - Enforces wireless access policy for mobile workers connecting to the corporate network through a wireless card.

The VPN Enforcer can uniquely identify and allow authorized distributed remote users to access the enterprise network. All other users will be denied access. It achieves this functionality by securely detecting and verifying a unique fingerprint that is given to the Sygate Security Agent by the Sygate Management Server as part of the initial policy download. This identification is transparent to the user and occurs upon connection through the VPN. The VPN Enforcer is VPN vendor neutral and has been tested with the leading VPN vendor solutions. This allows an IT security administrator the freedom to choose whatever VPN solution meets their needs and budget, while still providing protection of the VPN.

Click below for more information on the power of SSE security policies and how you can achieve total security policy compliance at the lowest cost of ownership.

[Request Online Demo]

[Product Datasheet]

[Evaluation Request]

<< Back To Top >>