Secure remote access to cloud applications

Many companies utilize a combination of various technologies. Some applications are hosted in their own data centers, while others have migrated to the cloud. However, without secure remote access, it is challenging to adequately protect these hybrid environments. 

The Flexera 2025 State of the Cloud Report highlights the latest trends in cloud computing. The survey reveals the pressure faced by IT professionals and outlines the strategic initiatives necessary for remaining competitive in the highly dynamic IT environment. A total of 759 cloud decision-makers and users from around the world participated in this year's Flexera survey. 

A few key takeaways from the report are that the cloud continues to grow unabated, with 63% of European and 68% of North American companies stating that their use of the cloud is “intensive.” Meanwhile, less than 37% in Europe and 31% in North America say that their cloud usage is “moderate to low.”

78% of companies in the United States use cloud computing, according to a Public First 2022 study.

Cloud services: Four out of five companies use them

The study found that 85% of respondents said that the use of cloud services had enabled them to significantly increase capacity or scale and was increasingly important to stay competitive in their market segment. Another interesting statistic is that 85% of respondents said that the use of cloud services had made it possible for them to take their business global.

Fifty percent of respondents reported that switching to cloud services resulted in saving of 50% of their IT costs by migrating their services to the cloud. On average, Public First estimates that cloud services help reduce the time needed to develop new software by around 25%. 74% of cloud service users agreed that their business or operating model would not be possible without cloud services. On average, Public First estimates that cloud services help reduce the time needed to develop new software by around 25%.

Although cloud adoption is on the rise, more recent data from the U.S. Census Annual Business Survey in 2020 further underscores the disparity in cloud adoption across sectors. For example, businesses in professional, scientific, and technical services are over 70% more likely to use cloud servers than those in the retail sector.

Hybrid IT: The public cloud needs new security concepts

For example, 22% of American companies primarily use public cloud computing services, with the public cloud holding the highest market share at 78%.  This is followed by private cloud solutions, which account for a 22% market share. Public cloud solutions generally cost less but can be accessed by cyber attackers from anywhere in the world without difficulty. In contrast, private clouds are more expensive but offer enhanced security. In the past, however, most IT services were operated centrally in their data centers. 

Many companies are facing new challenges and are wondering:

• How can we ensure the security of both our existing IT infrastructure and cloud applications?
• Do we need separate security products for this or are there all-in-one solutions from a single source?
• Will there be compatibility issues due to the use of new technologies?

Hardly anyone denies that connections to the cloud – whether from home, on a business trip or even from the office – require additional security. For this, however, companies need a sensibly coordinated combination of secure connections, encryption of data, and strong authentication solutions. Above all, it should be closely and continuously monitored.

Enterprise VPNs: Secure remote access to the cloud 

Remote access can be protected with virtual private networks (VPNs), which also work seamlessly with cloud services. At the core of this technology are encrypted tunnels that protect against man-in-the-middle (MitM) attacks, where hackers intercept or stealthily alter data.

In a classic VPN solution, the servers reside in the local data center, while software-based clients are installed on the end devices. In addition, there have been cloud VPNs for some time, where the servers are in the cloud. The benefits of such a cloud VPN are security, flexibility, central management, easier user management, and higher scalability.

In a nutshell: Hybrid cloud strategies can be protected with VPN

Most companies rely partially on the cloud, as they exist in a hybrid stage. Some applications are already running in the cloud, while others continue to operate locally on their own servers.

A VPN safeguards both applications that have migrated to the cloud and internal systems by utilizing encrypted tunnels and secure multi-factor authentication (MFA) with one-time passwords or single sign-on (SSO) solutions generated by the authenticator app.

Robust IT security is now a must, and secure remote access via VPN is one of the essential building blocks. With NCP's solutions, you will also be well-prepared for the future challenges of connecting cloud applications. In the central management software, you can precisely define which users, groups, and applications are allowed to access which resources in the cloud. Learn more about this topic here:

The perfect building block for your Zero Trust concept