VPN technology
to access the corporate network
The traditional
way to provide remote staff with access to internal resources is to provision
a VPN. It encrypts all data traveling between specified endpoints using such
protocols as IPsec, which ensures the privacy of all such data, even as it travels
across public networks. A typical VPN scenario is one in which a traveling salesperson
uses a company assigned laptop to access the corporate network through a dial-up
ISP via the internet. Typically, a secured connection terminating at the edge
of a corporate network will be accorded the same access rights as a local LAN
connection.
VPN requires
special its client software to be installed on every remote computer that will
be used to access the corporate network. This is not problematic for fixed location
telecommuters, but it requires travelers to bring computers with them rather
than being able to rely on computers that may be available at their destinations.
It also requires the IS department to manage the installation of client software
on a wide variety of computers that are not physically under its control.
The most serious difficulty with VPN solutions is the management of the remote client system. The remote system requires the installation of the same software applications that are on the local computers on the corporate LAN in order to provide the same functionality to access the corporate network. However the installation and maintenance of such applications is much more difficult because IS staff usually cannot physically access each computer without having to travel.
The security risks associated with VPN are eliminated with GoToMyPC because changing the security of the corporate LAN is not necessary. It is irrelevant if the remote computer is infected with a virus because it is never made part of the corporate network.