From VPN to Zero Trust: Why It’s Time to Retire Traditional VPNs, Part 2

In part one of this blog post series, we explored how traditional VPNs have become a security liability, with a 47% spike in vulnerabilities, that is forcing IT teams into constant patch-and-pray cycles. Now, in part two, let's examine how Zero Trust Network Access offers a better path forward.

A common concern when tightening security is the fear of hurting performance or user experience. Akamai Enterprise Application Access turns that assumption on its head by improving application access performance over legacy virtual private networks with its:

• Globally distributed edge network
• Built-in acceleration technology
• Clientless options
• Enterprise-grade reliability
• Redundancy and optimal routing
• Device posture checks for endpoint compliance
• Enhanced monitoring and admin visibility
• Cost efficiency through simplicity

Akamai Enterprise Application Access leverages a globally distributed edge platform with more than 4,000 points of presence (PoPs) across 135 countries. This extensive network ensures that users connect to the nearest edge location, which then establishes secure access to the application.

By eliminating the traditional "trombone effect," in which traffic routes through a central data center, Enterprise Application Access significantly reduces latency for geographically dispersed users. The multitiered architecture dynamically routes traffic via the most optimal path on Akamai's high-performance network backbone, delivering consistently fast access regardless of user location.

Enterprise Application Access incorporates Akamai's industry-leading content delivery capabilities, applying similar performance optimizations to private enterprise apps that power many of the world's busiest websites. The platform uses Akamai's global network infrastructure and proprietary transport protocols that were specifically designed to maximize performance across various network conditions.

This results in application access that's often faster than traditional VPN solutions, which typically backhaul traffic inefficiently. Customer experiences confirm that migrating from legacy VPNs to Enterprise Application Access frequently yields noticeable improvements in application responsiveness, functionality, and overall user experience.

Here’s something your users will love — many apps published via Enterprise Application Access can be accessed through a standard web browser, with no VPN client software required. No more “I forgot to launch the VPN” problems or wrestling with VPN client updates. 

This is a major win in BYOD environments and for third-party access (e.g., contractors). For modern web and cloud-based apps, users just go to a portal or click a link, authenticate, and they’re in.

This not only makes life easier for end users, but also simplifies support by reducing client installs and OS compatibility issues. And for those use cases that do require a client (an SMB session or a legacy TCP application, for example), Enterprise Application Access provides a lightweight client specifically for that app’s traffic — but it’s not a full device-level tunnel into your entire network.

Akamai Cloud is built to be highly resilient and able to handle massive traffic loads. Your remote access is no longer limited by the capacity of a cluster of VPN appliances in your data center. If suddenly your entire remote workforce needs to work from home, Enterprise Application Access can scale up dynamically to meet the demand without choking. 

The days of users complaining “the VPN is too slow” or failing to connect during peak hours could become a thing of the past. With Enterprise Application Access, secure access is delivered as an always-on security service designed to absorb spikes and keep connections steady.

Akamai Enterprise Application Access architectures use both distributed PoPs and connectors for built-in redundancy and high availability. This approach ensures optimal routing of user traffic by dynamically selecting the best path for performance and reliability. 

For example, in large-scale deployments, redundancy and routing optimization are a key factor in achieving seamless user experiences without sacrificing security.

Unlike traditional VPN solutions, Akamai Enterprise Application Access platforms can enforce device posture checks as part of the access decision process. This means secure access is not just gated by user identity, but also by the security posture of the connecting device — including OS version, presence of endpoint protection, encryption status, and more. 

It ensures that only healthy, compliant user devices can connect to sensitive apps, which significantly reduces risk across your workforce while preserving the integrity of your network security posture. These device checks also align with the principles of Zero Trust, where access depends on both user and device context. It’s especially effective in BYOD settings, where device diversity and risk levels vary.

Enterprise Application Access provides rich visibility and real-time analytics via centralized admin portals and seamless integration with security information and event management (SIEM) tools. This gives cybersecurity teams detailed insights into who’s accessing which apps, from where, and under what conditions — something that was notably lacking in some VPN deployments. 

This level of monitoring supports better granular access control and faster incident response across multiple use cases. It also makes it easier to enforce consistent security policies across all users, devices, and locations.

By eliminating the need for complex VPN appliances, inbound firewall configurations, and broad network-level access policies, Enterprise Application Access offers operational simplicity that translates into real cost savings. 

With a streamlined approach to granular access management, fewer infrastructure components to maintain, and reduced patching requirements, organizations can allocate resources more efficiently while improving functionality, security, and user experience.

One of the immediate benefits organizations notice after adopting Enterprise Application Access is the end of constant VPN patching emergencies. 

You know the frenzy whenever multiple new VPN CVEs hit, and you have to rush out fixes overnight? With Akamai Enterprise Application Access, those specific headaches disappear. 

Akamai’s security solutions ensure that the cloud-based service is kept up to date against emerging threats, and any necessary updates to the service are handled in a coordinated way (often transparently). Your team is no longer in the direct path of every VPN zero-day. This not only reduces risk, but also frees up your IT staff to focus on strategic projects instead of reactive patching.

You can also gain broader operational simplicity. Managing legacy VPNs can be complex — setting up firewall rules and network segments, configuring access control lists and routing, deploying client software to endpoints, and so on. 

By contrast, Enterprise Application Access’s policy model is more intuitive: It revolves around users, apps, and permissions (not IP subnets and firewall port rules). Many organizations find that this approach aligns better with how we think about access in the cloud era. 

Additionally, because Enterprise Application Access integrates with your existing identity systems, you can often reuse the user groups and roles you’ve already defined to control user access. This greatly reduces the chance of mistakes that could grant improper access compared to fiddling with low-level network settings on a VPN appliance.

We get it — change can be intimidating. You may be wondering how painful it will be to migrate the legacy VPN that everyone at your organization is used to. The good news is that Akamai Enterprise Application Access is designed to coexist with your existing VPN and be rolled out gradually, making migration low-risk, adaptive, and flexible.

Akamai’s teams and partners have guided many customers through the transition from VPN to Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA). Our team brings best practices from worldwide deployments — whether it’s planning the cutover of authentication or optimizing connector placement — so you’re not navigating uncharted waters. And real-world experiences show that this migration can be done quickly and smoothly. 

Whether you're pursuing a Zero Trust initiative or modernizing your VPN infrastructure, Enterprise Application Access provides the flexibility to align with both. The fact that huge enterprises have successfully deployed Enterprise Application Access to tens of thousands of users is proof that the solution offers true scalability, and that transitioning to a Zero Trust security model can be managed step-by-step for virtually any use case.