Secure Telecommuter AP: Protect Remote Users

Enterprises must invest time and effort into securing the corporate network. From network-based authentication and firewalling to wireless threat detection, Meru Networks installations are protected against attacks launched from within or around the campus. However, once users leave for the day or for a business trip, they leave the confines of the protected network and enter the wild. There, they and their laptops or other devices may be exposed to an onslaught of attacks.

Remote users must be connected to be productive. Unfortunately, that connectivity often comes from public wireless networks at coffee houses, airports, hotels, and convention centers. These networks do not, and cannot, require secure, per-user encryption for most tasks, thus allowing multiple opportunities for interception of traffic and insertion of malware.

The same applies to users' home networks, which are often left open or reliant on outdated security technologies. The prevalence of valid and invalid public networks – such as the infamous "Free Public WiFi" – puts the security of remote wireless clients at great risk.

The Meru Networks Secure Telecommuter Access Point removes that avenue of exposure.  The Secure Telecommuter AP provides remote users with the same level of security and protection that exists in the corporate network. Enterprise-mandated security policies are enforced identically, regardless of whether the user is remote or on the corporate campus.  Additional security measures may also be provided to the remote users, to ensure a higher level of thoroughness for posture detection appropriate for remote users.  Traffic from the Secure Telecommuter AP is sent via an encrypted tunnel directly to the enterprise, removing risks of exposure even on remote wired networks.

By extending the enterprise wireless network directly to the remote user, security officers are able to leverage wireless network lockdown procedures on laptops and other remote clients. Remote users are prevented from accidentally connecting to insecure networks that could expose sensitive data or give attackers a route to the user's machine. And unlike laptop-based VPNs, the Telecommuter AP extends protection to Wi-Fi enabled phones and other devices.