Google unveils secure remote access service to unburden enterprise VPNs

Google has made available BeyondCorp Remote Access, a cloud-based, zero trust service that allows employees, contractors and partners to securely access specific corporate resources from untrusted networks without having to use the company’s VPN.

remote access service

The goal is to help companies with a suddenly massive remote workforce from overburdening the company’s VPN infrastructure.

About BeyondCorp Remote Access

BeyondCorp Remote Access is a subscription-based service that is available through Google Cloud.

“This cloud solution — based on the zero trust approach we’ve used internally for almost a decade — lets your employees and extended workforce access internal web apps from virtually any device, anywhere, without a traditional remote-access VPN,” Google Cloud honchos Sunil Potti and Sampath Srinivas explained.

“Over time, we plan to offer the same capability, control, and additional protections for virtually any application or resource a user needs to access.”

Access to web apps and services is granted (or not) based on user identity, device identity, device security, location, and other metadata and signals collected through the browser or an endpoint agent that is installed on the user’s device (if the customer mandates it).

The web apps that can be accessed through the service can be hosted on Google Cloud, on other clouds, or on the customer’s premises. Enterprise admins can configure access policies for each app.

remote access service

“For example, you can enforce a policy that says: ‘My contract HR recruiters working from home on their own laptops can access our web-based document management system (and nothing else), but only if they are using the latest version of the OS, and are using phishing-resistant authentication like security keys.’ Or: ‘My timecard application should be safely available to all hourly employees on any device, anywhere,'” the duo explained.

The company’s long term plan is to “offer the same capability, control, and additional protections for virtually any application or resource a user needs to access.”

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