Why VPNs Are Obsolete: 12 Top Zero‑Trust Tools to Secure Your Network

Why VPNs Are Being Replaced – Zero Trust Becomes the New Standard

Although VPNs promise encrypted traffic and hidden IPs, they often become high‑value attack vectors; a single credential leak can grant unrestricted internal access. In 2023 more than 60% of security incidents began with VPN credential theft, making traditional VPNs an outdated security model.

What Makes a Zero Trust Tool? (Quick Primer)

Identity‑driven: access decisions are based on user and device identity, not network location.

Least‑privilege: users receive only the minimum permissions required.

Continuous verification: every session is re‑authenticated and re‑authorized.

Micro‑segmentation: granular access controls replace flat “inside‑network” trust.

Adaptive policies: real‑time context (device posture, location, risk) shapes access decisions.

12 Leading Zero Trust Tools Replacing VPN

1. Cloudflare Zero Trust (Access + Gateway)

Cloudflare turns its edge network into an identity‑aware proxy, protecting applications based on identity and policy rather than network perimeter.

Features

Identity‑based access to internal web apps, SSH, RDP without a VPN.

Micro‑segmentation per user or group.

Browser isolation to eliminate browser‑based exploits.

How It Replaces VPN

No network‑level access; attackers cannot scan or move laterally.

Integrates OIDC, SAML and social logins (Google, GitHub, etc.).

Fine‑grained policies based on device posture, geography and user risk.

Red‑Team Example

A red‑team attempting RDP sees a 403 Forbidden page unless the session passes full identity and device verification, blocking lateral movement.

Quick Setup

Register for the Cloudflare Zero Trust portal.

Add your domain and configure protected applications.

Define policies (e.g., allow [email protected] only from registered devices).

Deploy the cloudflared connector to your server.

cloudflared tunnel login
cloudflared tunnel create myapp
cloudflared tunnel route dns myapp app.internal.example.com

After deployment, traffic is proxied through Cloudflare instead of a flat VPN.

2. Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange

Zscaler provides a cloud‑native zero‑trust access engine that authenticates users and devices before granting any application access.

Features

Pre‑access authentication for web, SSH or any app.

Traffic is redirected to the cloud for DLP and malware scanning.

Dynamic policies adapt to user, device, location and risk.

Real‑World Use

Even if a red‑team compromises a user device, they must pass continuous health and identity checks before reaching valuable resources.

3. Tailscale

Tailscale builds a mesh network on top of WireGuard, but enforces identity‑based ACLs.

Features

Mesh networking with per‑identity ACLs.

SSO login via Google, Microsoft or GitHub.

No open inbound ports; all traffic is encrypted and proxied.

Why It Replaces VPN

Connection decisions are based on identity, not IP.

Simple for small teams – install and go.

Setup Steps

Create a Tailscale account.

Install Tailscale on each device.

curl -fsSL https://tailscale.com/install.sh | sh
tailscale up

4. Akamai Enterprise Application Access (EAA)

Akamai EAA proxies application access rather than network access, integrating with SSO and device checks.

Features

Protects HTTP(S), RDP, SSH, SQL, etc.

Integrates with IdPs for SSO, step‑up authentication and device posture.

Continuous status checks for user, device and behavior.

Red‑Team Pain Point

Even after compromising a user device, attackers must satisfy real‑time health and identity checks before any resource is visible.

5. Google BeyondCorp Enterprise

BeyondCorp moves trust from the network edge to user and device identity, providing context‑aware access.

Features

Identity‑centric trust model.

IP‑agnostic, context‑aware access.

Fine‑grained policies based on device health and risk.

Red‑Team Impact

VPN‑style service enumeration is blocked; even RCE or SQLi attempts are stopped unless the attacker’s identity and device are verified.

6. Perimeter 81

A zero‑trust network access solution aimed at teams of 2‑2000 users.

Features

Application‑ and identity‑driven access for cloud or on‑prem apps.

Policy engine considers user, device, time, location and risk score.

SIEM integration for suspicious‑activity monitoring.

Why It Beats VPN

Granular policies can grant devs access to a dev‑DB while blocking all other traffic, enforce MFA, device compliance and time‑based restrictions.

7. Teleport

Teleport provides short‑lived, identity‑based certificates for SSH, Kubernetes and databases.

Features

No static keys or passwords – all credentials are temporary.

Session recording, audit logs and RBAC.

Code Example – Password‑less SSH

tsh login --proxy=proxy.example.com --auth=github
ssh user@node1

8. Cisco Duo Network Gateway

Duo’s lightweight gateway acts as a zero‑trust access point, extending Duo MFA beyond authentication.

Features

Reverse‑proxy web access to internal sites.

Device trust – blocks jail‑broken, non‑compliant or outdated devices.

Integrates with Duo MFA, LDAP and SSO.

Example Policy

location /jenkins/ {
    allow duo:compliant_devices;
    deny all;
}

9. Appgate SDP

Software‑Defined Perimeter creates encrypted, identity‑driven point‑to‑point connections.

Features

Identity‑ and context‑based encrypted tunnels.

Unauthenticated users see no network – no ping, no port scan.

Dynamic policies adjust in real time based on location, time, device and risk.

Policy Snippet

allow process:nginx@hostA to app-server:443
deny * to *

10. Illumio Core

Illumio delivers micro‑segmentation down to process and port level.

Features

Real‑time visibility and isolation per process/port.

Decentralised, dynamic policy enforcement.

SIEM/SOAR integration for automated response.

How It Stops Attackers

Even with an RCE exploit, lateral movement is blocked unless the attacker’s process, user and context are explicitly whitelisted.

11. NordLayer

NordLayer offers a simple zero‑trust solution for mid‑size markets and small organisations.

Features

Identity‑based application gateway with an easy onboarding flow.

Device posture checks, MFA and user‑level policies.

Network‑level malware and phishing protection.

Advantages

Quickly add contractors or bounty hunters, grant them only the services they need, and block all other infrastructure.

Step‑by‑Step Guide: Replacing VPN with Zero Trust

Step 1 – Inventory Your Applications

List every internal resource (Git server, staging app, DB admin panel) and note its URL/IP, protocol and required users.

Step 2 – Choose a Zero‑Trust Tool (start with 1‑2 apps)

Example: Cloudflare Access.

Step 3 – Deploy a Connector

cloudflared tunnel login
cloudflared tunnel create gitserver
cloudflared tunnel route dns gitserver git.internal
cloudflared tunnel run gitserver

Step 4 – Define Access Policies

Only [email protected] may reach git.internal.

Access requires a registered device.

Enforce 2FA.

Step 5 – Remove VPN Access

Block VPN ports on the firewall and cease routing internal traffic through the VPN.

Step 6 – Test (Red‑Team Exercise)

Attempt internal subnet scanning – should be blocked.

Login from an unregistered device – should be denied.

Reuse stolen credentials – should trigger 2FA.

Step 7 – Expand to Additional Applications

Repeat the process for staging.internal and dbadmin.internal, refining policies as needed.

Real‑World Red‑Team Stories

In one penetration test, an attacker who captured VPN credentials could move freely across the network; after switching to Cloudflare Access, the same attacker hit a 403 page at every hop, forcing a complete abort.

Another case involved an XSS flaw in an internal tool; Illumio’s micro‑segmentation allowed the malicious process to talk only to its database, preventing any further lateral movement.

Core Takeaways

Zero‑trust tools break flat network models, thwarting lateral movement.

Least‑privilege access fits bounty‑programs, red‑team labs and remote work.

Continuous monitoring and adaptive policies give immediate alerts on RCE or privilege‑escalation attempts.

Adopting zero‑trust today means replacing outdated VPNs with granular, identity‑driven controls that keep your infrastructure safe.