Network Security Principles and Practices

VPNs Defined

In order to understand the various types of VPNs, you must first have a clear understanding of what they are.

A VPN is a means of carrying private traffic over a public network. It is often a means of connecting two private networks across a public network such as the Internet. A private network is essentially a network that is not freely accessible to the public. This means that a set of rules governs who can be part of the private network and who can use it as a transit medium. A VPN is called virtual because to the users on either end, the two private networks seem to be seamlessly connected to each other. In other words, they are virtually part of one private network comprised of the two networks combined. However, this is only ...