Reasons why your small business needs a VPN

Reasons why your small business needs a VPN

To thrive in today’s business environment, most if not all small companies connect to the internet. They do it to have a digital presence, communicate with different stakeholders, conduct research, or do other online activities. However, using the internet also threatens their cybersecurity.

In fact, 43% of cyberattacks target small businesses, and 60% of companies of this size close within six months of being hacked. That’s why, as a small business owner, you need to beef up your company’s cybersecurity by using a virtual private network (VPN).

What is a VPN?

A VPN is an encrypted tunnel that secures your connection to the internet. To better illustrate, imagine the internet as a mountain across an open field that you go to whenever you go online. In this case, a VPN is an underground tunnel that lets you safely get to the mountain. Without a VPN, you would need to cross the field where everyone can see you, making you vulnerable to attackers and spies.

This means that whenever you connect to the internet without a VPN, hackers can see your data in transit and follow that trail to reach your internet protocol (IP) address. But when you use a VPN, your data is encrypted before it enters the tunnel, thus concealing your identity and browsing activities.

Why should your small business use a VPN?

There are many reasons why you should use a VPN, such as:

#1 To improve security and privacy
Whenever you connect to the internet through a VPN, your data passes through a secure tunnel that encrypts it. This means that even if unauthorized users somehow manage to intercept your data in transmission, they won’t be able to understand it. This protects your sensitive business information from prying eyes.

What’s more, a VPN assigns you a new IP address; therefore, hackers won’t be able to connect your browsing activities to your IP address.

#2 To allow remote access
A VPN allows you to safely access your corporate network over the internet even when you are working outside the office or connecting to unsecured public Wi-Fi like that in airports, hotels, and coffee shops. Such types of connections are notoriously targeted by hackers since data transmitted through these is unencrypted, making it easy to steal. Thankfully, using a VPN will eliminate this risk.

#3 To bypass geo-restrictions
When you travel for work, you may not be able to access certain work apps and websites due to the strict internet access laws of those places. The Great Firewall of China, for example, is well-known for blocking access to Google, Yahoo, Telegram, WhatsApp, Youtube, Google Drive, Slack, and many others.

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However, VPNs let you bypass such restrictions by “spoofing” your IP address to a country of your choice. So even if you’re in China, your IP address can still show that you’re in the United States. This lets you access your company’s online resources wherever you may be.

At the same time, if you want to research products available in the country of your choice and use that country’s local currency, in-country prices, and shipping charges, then you can easily do so without leaving the US by using a VPN.

Partner with the IT experts of Founders Technology Group so we can help you find the VPN solution that best suits your company’s needs. Book your FREE IT consultation today to get started.

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