Impact of the Virtual Private Network on Businesses Research Paper

Impact of the Virtual Private Network on Businesses - Research Paper Example VPNs are categorized according to the role they play in business, and there are three different categories of VPNs, one being remote access VPNs that allows remote users like mobile employees to securely access the business network. Furthermore, we have intranet VPNs enables a company to connect its remote sites to the corporate backbone, and lastly, extranet VPNs facilitates an organization’s suppliers, strategic associates and customers to be connected to the company network (Bidgoli, 2005). Introduction The growth of internet users globally has been phenomenal from a meager four computers in 1969 that formed the ARPANET to an estimated 2.4 billion users in 2012(internet world statistics). Businesses depend on the internet for real-time information; thus, the accessibility and easy availability of the internet has enabled an unprecedented growth, and the need for secure networks became essential. However, businesses that have dispersed locations are faced with the issue of l ong-distance private communication (Wallace, 1998); this is considering that communication with others privately across long distances previously was too expensive and difficult. Business exchange information securely within computers and devices on these networks provided that only persons with real access to the network could share that information. Thus, communication across long distances enabled large businesses to lease private phone lines from service provider AT&T, and this meant that only business information was transmitted on the line. Therefore, a business establishment in Los Angeles was able to lease an entire phone line from AT&T to connect to their office in Atlanta, Georgia. The business paid for the line without due regard to the volume of data exchanged on it. This leased line solution used by business for private communication turned out to be costly that several businesses could not use this method of connectivity. The growth of VPNs A Virtual Private Network co nceals the line between the open public internet and a closed private leased line network (Wouters and Bantoft, 2006). Kosiur (1998) calls them virtual to indicate that although circuit between two sites could be treated as a private line, it was not physically wired and served only as a linkage when traffic was passing over the circuit. The evolution VPNs started with the earlier usage of frame relay technology, whereby businesses would enjoy secure method of communication by utilizing a router at each endpoint. They became important because of the usage of less equipment to form a secure connection than leased lines (Dern, 1992). Moreover, they were comparatively cheap than leased lines, considering the overall expense and the inability to exhaust all the bandwidth of the leased line. Considering all the advantages it had, there were still costly issues that accompanied its usage; for example, maintenance, and this led to the development of an Internet-based VPN. This technology u sed open and the readily available Internet to form a secure connection amongst multiple users including those in remote locations and connections were established when needed and terminated after data transmission (Berger, 2012).