Did you know that, according to Grand View Research, the size of the global VPN market had a value of over $25 billion in 2019? Additionally, it has an expected CAGR, or compounded annual growth rate of 17.4% between 2020 and 2027.
Considering how popular both personal and business VPN service options are becoming, these statistics come as no surprise.
If you’re considering using a business VPN for your business, you might not be sure where to start. With so much information out there, it can be overwhelming to find the right VPN service for your business.
That’s why we’ve put together this article. In it, we’ll review everything to look for in a business VPN service.
Finally, you can buy a VPN service for your business and have all your online needs met, making it possible to focus on growing your business faster than ever. Read on to learn more.
The Different Business VPN Service Options
When you compare VPN services to find the right one for your business, one of the first considerations you need to make is what type of business VPN service you’re looking for. For businesses, there are three types available.
If you’ve been asking the question, “What is a VPN service?” we’ll clarify the answer here by exploring the different options you have.
By knowing which type is best for your business, you can start narrowing your VPN service providers list by keeping the ones that have that type available on your list and taking the other ones off it.
Fixed VPN
Fixed VPNs, also known as dedicated or static VPNs, give you a unique, single IP address none of your clients will use. Anyone who is using the VPN service within your organization will be connecting to the exact same IP address.
If you run a business that restricts resource access to only your company network, this might be a good choice for you.
Keep in mind that, when you get a fixed VPN, you’re paying more for the dedicated IP address. However, there are several reasons why this investment can be worthwhile.
First of all, by having your whole organization working on one IP address, you’ll have centralized access and more user management.
Second, it’s unlikely your server will end up blacklisted since any users outside your organization won’t affect the activity on the IP address.
For this same reason, you won’t have any performance issues caused by external traffic. You’ll also have results that are more reliable when you send marketing emails.
If you have a large enough budget and needs that require these benefits, investing in a dedicated VPN can be worth it.
Specialized VPN
Another type of business VPN service is the specialized VPN. When you use this option, you’re getting a VPN that directly integrates into a specialized server or your router, and, usually, your in-house IT department will manage the VPN.
Because of these features, this type of VPN is most popular among large organizations such as enterprises.
Once you’ve had the VPN installed on your router or server, every device connected to it will be automatically protected.
One of the biggest benefits of this type of VPN service is that it’s easy to get all the benefits that come with VPN on devices such as streaming hardware, which don’t work well usually with the majority of VPN platforms.
Additionally, you can easily connect a large number of users to the same VPN—without having to adjust individual user services.
You also don’t have to worry about unsecured traffic. As a result, if your VPN goes down, the server or router will too. This is an alternative to the kill switches usually used to disconnect VPNs when the VPNs stop working.
However, there isn’t support for VPN functionality available with all routers. This means that, if you get a specialized VPN, you might first have to purchase new hardware.
Additionally, running the VPN through your business’s router usually requires a more complex setup, as well as ongoing management.
VPN Service
Finally, there’s the VPN service option. When you use this option, the VPN functions on the cloud, with your traffic being sent through your provider’s tunnel before it sends it to the Internet. Basically, it works as an alternative to an ISP, or Internet service provider.
This type of business VPN is becoming more popular these days among many businesses.
There is, however, a problem with this type of service. With a more reliable VPN designed for businesses, such as the ones we explored above, you get administrative features. You don’t get that with an ordinary VPN service.
For this very reason, this type of VPN service is less expensive than the others. If you only need a few tools, you could save money while still using it instead of a VPN designed for businesses.
Whatever type of VPN you’re looking for, you can check out the best rated VPN according to Secure Thoughts.
Features You Need to Consider
In addition to deciding which VPN service option is best for you, there are different features you need to consider. These include tracking, logging, central management, server coverage, activity management, security, and more.
Tracking
You need to be aware of whether the VPN service you’re using is tracking your activity and selling your data to others. This is common with many free VPNs, the same way that it is when you’re using a social media platform for free.
Many free, and even some paid, VPN services will use the data they collect from their users as an income source, selling it to other businesses so they have the marketing information they need.
Considering that most people who use a VPN do it for security purposes, VPN services doing this defeats, in large part, the very reason why you’re getting a VPN in the first place.
If you’re getting a VPN to protect your business’s security, look closely at the privacy policies of the VPN services you’re considering using. This way, you can find out if they’ll collect your data and share it with third parties.
You can take any VPN services that do this off your list if security is a priority for you.
Logging
Another security issue that comes up with VPN services is logging. Even though a big reason why people use VPNs is to keep their information safe, VPN services often store your information. This is common both among business and personal VPN services.
This is a huge worry. For example, let’s say the government wants to subpoena your information.
In this case, if it’s stored on the VPN, they can access it. However, if the VPN service doesn’t practice logging, you won’t have this problem.
There are some that will store more information than others. Depending on what you want to keep secure, you could go for a VPN service that logs a limited amount of information.
The best option, however, if this is something important to you, is to hire a VPN service that doesn’t log.
Note that many VPN services that claim to not log actually do. For this reason, if you want to look for VPN providers that have been audited by a security audit that’s independent.
Central Management
If you manage a large team at your business, and want to promote business by using different tools you need a business VPN service that has a central management system that’s intuitive to use. With a good control panel, you’ll have access to different configuration options.
These might include the ability to control individual permissions or deleting and adding user accounts.
Another useful central management feature is two-factor authentication, which can use for all your employee accounts. You might even be able to set up your business’s logins with third-party platforms.
For example, with NordVPN, users can sign in with their Azure, Google, and Okta without having to create a VPN account.
Server Coverage
Server coverage is another important VPN feature you need to consider. Depending on how you run your business, you might need coverage for servers only in the US or in a variety of countries and regions.
If you use only one dedicated server that everyone accesses remotely, however, you don’t need to worry about server coverage.
Generally speaking, if you don’t have one dedicated server, choosing a server that’s physically close to your business usually means it will run faster.
Speed
Even though server coverage can have an impact on speed, there’s also raw speed to think about. For this reason, searching for the fastest VPN service can help you add some reliable VPN options to your list.
You don’t want a slow connection that makes it difficult for your business team to get their work done.
Note that, if you find that you have issues with your VPN service speed after you’ve already purchased it, you can get in touch with the company. They might be able to help you if you’re experiencing any outages or slowdowns.
Activity Management
Depending on which VPN service you choose, you might get activity management features, such as the ability to set restrictions or limits on user activity. For example, if you don’t want your team spending hours on social media, you can restrict those sites.
You might also be able to restrict sites that usually have malware on them. Considering that many data breaches are caused by user error, you can limit how often this happens by blocking these dangerous sites.
Usually, you’ll have a larger amount of activity management features with a business VPN service than one designed for individual users.
If you want to have a closer look at employee activity and protect your business from data breaches, it might be worth investing in a slightly pricier VPN that has these activity management features.
Security
In addition to the security issues we’ve covered already, tracking and logging, it’s smart to find a VPN service that prioritizes security. For example, a VPN that doesn’t have two-factor authorization for user accounts might not be a smart move.
Because it’s important to protect your business, you should review all the security measures available with each VPN you’re considering.
One of the most important is the kill switch. This is a common feature available through both personal and business VPNs.
When a kill switch is being used, the VPN will automatically cut internet traffic off whenever your connection to the VPN server is lost.
This is an important security feature because it protects you from having unsecured network exposure. If you don’t have one, then you could have this exposure until your VPN connection comes back or you notice it isn’t online.
For this reason, you should search for a VPN service that has the kill switch.
Any additional security features that are important to you should also be considered. Looking at a list of VPN services ranked can help.
Customer Service
Finally, you want a VPN service that has reliable customer service. This way, if you encounter any problems, you’ll be able to fix them immediately. The last thing you want is a problem with security or a connection that means you can’t run your business properly.
Need More Information?
Now that you know what to look for in a business VPN service, you might need more information. Maybe you want to learn more about how VPNs work or you want to learn about other ways to work with your team online.
Whatever information you need, you can find it on our blog.
Simply go to the Business Products & Services section, where you can learn about all the different tools, software, and strategies you can use to run your business effectively.
Related Topic : cybersecurity tips for small Business.
