VPN vs ZTNA: Secure Remote Access for Small Business

A VPN gives a remote worker a tunnel onto your whole network. ZTNA gives them a checked, per-app door into only the one thing they need. That difference is why more small businesses are replacing their VPN, and why attackers keep targeting the ones that haven't.

The threat data backs it up. In the 2025 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report, edge devices and VPNs made up 22% of the systems attackers exploited to break in, up from 3% a year earlier. Nearly eight times more. Your remote-access gateway isn't a quiet piece of plumbing anymore. It's a target.

Here's what's changed, and how to decide.

What's the difference between a VPN and ZTNA?

A VPN trusts the network. Once a user connects, they're "inside," and inside usually means broad access to servers, shares, and apps. ZTNA, or Zero Trust Network Access, trusts nothing by default. It verifies the user and their device on every request and grants access to one specific application, not the whole network.

The federal standard puts it plainly. NIST's Zero Trust Architecture moves defenses away from static, network-based perimeters and grants no implicit trust based on where a device sits. A VPN is the old perimeter model. ZTNA is the newer one.

VPN vs ZTNA at a glance

• Trust model: a VPN trusts anyone on the network; ZTNA verifies the user and device on every request.
• Access scope: a VPN drops users onto the whole network; ZTNA grants one specific app at a time.
• Attack surface: a VPN exposes an internet-facing appliance you have to patch and defend; ZTNA keeps apps behind a cloud-brokered check.
• If a login is stolen: with a VPN the attacker inherits broad access; with ZTNA they reach one app, and only if the device check passes.

Why are VPNs getting attacked?

Because they're exposed to the internet, widely used, and slow to patch. When a VPN appliance has a flaw, it's a straight path inside.

This isn't theoretical. In early 2024, CISA warned that attackers were chaining vulnerabilities in Ivanti VPN gateways to bypass authentication and run commands with elevated privileges, with some keeping access even after a factory reset. And per Verizon, only about 54% of edge-device flaws got fully patched during the year, taking a median of 32 days. That's a month-long window on the exact box guarding your network.

The other problem is stolen logins. If a VPN only asks for a username and password, a phished credential hands an attacker the same broad access your employee had.

Does this really matter for a small business?

More than for a large one. Small businesses get hit harder when they're breached. The 2025 DBIR found ransomware in 88% of small-business breaches, versus 39% at large organizations, and stolen credentials showed up in 33% of SMB breaches.

Remote access is a normal part of running a business now, not an edge case. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 22.9% of workers teleworked in early 2024, roughly one in five. Every one of those connections is a door, and a flat VPN makes every door open onto the same hallway.

Is ZTNA hard to set up for a 20-person company?

Not the way it used to be. Modern ZTNA is delivered as a cloud service, so there's no big appliance to buy and expose. Users get an agent, you define which people can reach which apps, and access is checked per session against identity and device health.

For a small team, the practical benefits show up fast:

• A lost laptop or a phished password reaches one app, not the whole network.
• Contractors get access to exactly one system, for exactly as long as they need it.
• You stop patching an internet-facing VPN box under time pressure.

ZTNA also pairs naturally with the identity controls you may already have. It's the same principle behind zero trust for small business, applied to remote access.

So should I rip out my VPN today?

Not overnight, and not blindly. If your VPN is patched, protected with phishing-resistant MFA, and only a few people use it, you have breathing room. Plan the move, don't panic it.

But if your VPN gives everyone flat access to the whole network, runs on an appliance you're behind on patching, or protects only a password, that's the setup attackers are counting on. Start there. Move your most sensitive systems behind per-app access first, then phase out broad VPN access as you go.

The goal isn't ZTNA for its own sake. It's making sure one stolen password or one unpatched box can't hand someone your entire business. A phished login is also how session hijacking gets started, so narrowing what any single account can reach pays off twice.

Frequently asked questions

Is ZTNA the same as a VPN replacement?

For most remote-access use, yes. ZTNA is designed to do the job a VPN did, granting remote workers access to internal apps, but scoped to individual applications with per-session checks instead of dropping users onto the full network. Some businesses keep a small VPN for one legacy case and move everything else to ZTNA.

Does ZTNA replace my firewall?

No. A firewall protects your network perimeter and filters traffic; ZTNA governs how remote users reach specific applications. They solve different problems and work together. Moving to ZTNA doesn't mean you retire your firewall.

Will ZTNA slow my team down?

Usually the opposite. Because ZTNA connects a user straight to the app they need through nearby cloud points of presence, it often feels faster than routing all traffic back through a single VPN concentrator. The access checks happen in the background.

We already use Microsoft 365. Do we get ZTNA-style access?

Partly. Conditional access and identity controls in Microsoft 365 give you per-app, per-condition access to cloud apps, which is zero trust applied to those services. Reaching on-premises apps or servers still needs a dedicated ZTNA layer. Many small businesses combine the two.

What's the first step to move off a legacy VPN?

Inventory what people actually reach through the VPN and how sensitive each system is. Most teams find a short list of apps that account for nearly all real use. Put those behind per-app access first; that covers most of the risk without a disruptive cutover.

Not sure whether your remote access is a liability or holding up fine? We'll look at it with you. Book a complimentary risk assessment, and see how we handle cybersecurity and managed IT for businesses that can't afford a bad day.

Written by Joe Laboy, who leads networking and managed IT operations at The NetSys Group. NetSys has delivered managed IT, cybersecurity, and cloud services since 1998, serving businesses across NY, NJ, CT, PA, and Southwest Florida.