Re: VPN policies.

["Nathan W. Labadie" <ab0781 () WAYNE EDU>]

Hello Matt,

At our institution we're using a Juniper SSL VPN appliance. It's tied to
our central authentication server and is currently restricted to staff
and faculty usage by directory attributes. The VPN assigns ip addresses
from predetermined pool. This includes both the web interface and the
included IPSEC/SSL client. Some clients enable the VPN and connect
directly to campus resources; others enable the VPN, connect to their
desktop, and handle remote work from there. The type of usage is
primarily left up to the user.

We treat the pool of VPN addresses the same as we do the rest of the
campus, i.e. "trusted but not much". The VPN users essentially have as
much access as they would on campus. However, all of our production
servers are behind a dedicated firewall with an inline IDS. The
combination firewall and IDS screens out the majority of malicious
traffic, most being caused by run-of-the-mill worms and viruses.

Hope this helps.

Thanks,
Nate

On Friday 20 April 2007, Matthew Gracie wrote:
> Like most institutions, I'm sure, we're getting more and more
> requests from people who want access to on-campus resources from
> off-campus. Our VPN concentrator is more than up to the task, but
> right now, we're discussing the best set of policies to allow people
> access to work from home without compromising data.
>
> How are people handling this? Are users accessing VPNs with their
> personally owned machines at your institution? Are you mandating
> laptops for users who work from home? An entirely different computer
> that stays at the employee's house? Who pays for the Internet
> connection? What about other hardware (routers, APs, etc.) that they
> need? Is IT supplying computers for off-campus use, or is it the job
> of the department?
>
> Any and all input is appreciated.
>
> --Matt

--
Nathan W. Labadie
Sr. Security Specialist
C&IT Security and Access Management
http://sam.wayne.edu
Wayne State University
http://www.wayne.edu

"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
- Benjamin Franklin, 1759