A
virtual private network (
VPN) extends a
private network across a
public network, such as the
Internet. It enables users to send and receive data across shared or public networks as if their computing devices were directly connected to the private network, and thus are benefiting from the functionality, security and management policies of the private network. A VPN is created by establishing a virtual
point-to-point connection through the use of dedicated connections, virtual
tunnelling protocols, or traffic
encryption.