Many believe a Virtual Private Network (VPN) significantly protects against ransomware attacks. Not only is this myth incorrect, but your VPN is actually a potential attack vector for malicious actors. The threat further increases through the recent proliferation of VPNs as millions of workers transition into working from home. Furthermore, these factors create an array of potential access points to your network for attackers to target. In this blog, we discuss best practices and solutions in securing your organization’s VPNs.
Software Solutions for VPN Ransomware Protection
The VPN industry offers a wide range of products, with varying levels of security features. When selecting a VPN for enterprise or government use, it is incredibly important to consider the security features. All VPNs offer a secure method of connecting to your private network, but only a few contain the robust security measures and monitoring systems that Cisco’s AnyConnect VPN service does. Cisco provides a large suite of security features enabling you to easily create the right VPN for your use case. Furthermore, Cisco’s security features the ability to verify authorized users through multi-factor authentication (MFA) as well as monitoring every endpoint of your network.
MFA offers an additional layer of protection from ransomware by preventing stolen credentials from being used in a breach. Even if a staff member’s credentials are compromised, MFA provides a secondary barrier preventing unauthorized access. Another crucial security solution offered by Cisco is their network monitoring tools. These software solutions allow you to identify attempted network breaches and prevent them from successfully encrypting your data. Cisco offers many more security solutions to secure your VPN. To look at their full product suite refer to the AnyConnect Product Page. For a detailed look at other ransomware security products outside of VPN security look to our blog on the Best Ransomware Security Products in 2021.
Personal Best Practices for VPN Protection
Software solutions offer a great level of security in their ability to neutralize ransomware attacks. By learning personal VPN best practices you can prevent these attacks from occurring in the first place. Below are some of the most important practices to implement in order to secure your VPN:
- Chose a unique and complex password. Never use a preexisting password for your VPN access, as this password could already be compromised from a previous data leak. Even if this password has not been compromised there is still the danger of future occurences.
- Change your password every 3 months. This is a basic yet highly important security precaution that many people overlook. Changing login credentials regualarly ensures the attack window hackers possess remains small.
- Enable multi-factor authentication. We already covered this in the software solutions section, but it bears repeating. Many VPNs have the option to opt-in to MFA instead of it being mandatory. It is important to not skip this step and always enable MFA when available.
Contact Strategic Communications for More Information
To learn more about how to protect your VPN and the rest of your IT infrastructure from ransomware click the button below to contact a Cyber Security expert at Strategic Communications.
