NordLayer, formerly known as NordVPN Teams, is a

network access An access network is a type of telecommunications network which connects subscribers to their immediate service provider. It is contrasted with the core network, which connects local providers to one another. The access network may be further ...

security service with applications for

Microsoft Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...

macOS macOS, previously OS X and originally Mac OS X, is a Unix, Unix-based operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple since 2001. It is the current operating system for Apple's Mac (computer), Mac computers. With ...

Linux Linux ( ) is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an kernel (operating system), operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991, by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically package manager, pac ...

, Android and

iOS Ios, Io or Nio (, ; ; locally Nios, Νιός) is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides. It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. It is about long an ...

and

Browser extension A browser extension is a software module for customizing a web browser. Browsers typically allow users to install a variety of extensions, including user interface modifications, cookie management, ad blocking, and the custom scripting and st ...

. The software is marketed as a privacy and security tool that enables the implementation of Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA), Secure Web Gateway (SWG), and Firewall-as-a-Service (FWaaS) in hybrid and multi-cloud cloud environments. It is developed by Nord Security (Nordsec Ltd), a company that creates

cybersecurity Computer security (also cybersecurity, digital security, or information technology (IT) security) is a subdiscipline within the field of information security. It consists of the protection of computer software, systems and networks from thr ...

software, and was initially supported by the

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

startup accelerator Startup accelerators, also known as seed accelerators, are fixed-term, cohort-based programs, that include mentorship and educational components, and (sometimes) culminate in a public pitch event or demo day. While traditional business incubato ...

and

business incubator A business incubator is an organization that helps startup companies and individual entrepreneurs to develop their businesses by providing a fullscale range of services, starting with management training and office space, and ending with venture ...

Tesonet.

History

NordLayer was founded in 2019 as NordVPN Teams as a subsidiary of NordSecurity, a technology company that develops and provides virtual private network (VPN) services, such as

NordVPN NordVPN is a Lithuanian VPN service founded in 2012. NordVPN is developed by Nord Security (formerly Nordsec Ltd), a cybersecurity software company that was initially supported by Tesonet, a Lithuanian startup accelerator and business incubat ...

and SurfShark. In October 2020, NordVPN Team relocated to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

as part of a larger effort to expand its operations and better serve its enterprise clients. Nevertheless, Nordlayer committed to maintaining its Panamanian corporate structure, allowing it to remain outside the jurisdiction of the Fourteen Eyes intelligence sharing pact, which includes the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and other countries. In September 2021, the NordVPN Teams was rebranded to NordLayer. The transition marked the introduction of advanced network access control capabilities, positioning NordLayer as part of the broader

secure access service edge A secure access service edge (SASE) (also secure access secure edge) is technology used to deliver wide area network (WAN) and security controls as a cloud computing service directly to the source of connection (user, device, Internet of things (I ...

(SASE) framework.

Products

NordLayer is based on a cloud-based cybersecurity product that enables organizations to implement secure service edge (SSE) best practices, combining advanced internet access security, network access control, and network connectors into one cohesive solution. The NordLayer platform enables IT administrators to add, remove, or transfer user accounts, dedicated servers, or custom gateways — with static or dedicated IP addresses — for specific teams to remotely access a company's LAN. In addition, network administrators have the ability to monitor user activity and obtain information about the connection. This includes checking whether the devices being used comply with predefined security rules. Nordlayer offers a Single Sign-On (SSO) login option to its users. SSO logins are currently supported through various providers, including Google SSO, Entra ID ( Azure AD), Okta, JumpCloud and

OneLogin OneLogin, Inc. is a cloud-based identity and access management (IAM) provider that develops a unified access management (UAM) platform for enterprise-level businesses and organizations. History OneLogin was founded in 2009 in San Francisco by Tho ...

. NordLayer supports various second-factor confirmation (multi-factor authentication) methods, including SMS authentication,

Time-based One-Time Password Time-based one-time password (TOTP) is a computer algorithm that generates a one-time password (OTP) using the current time as a source of uniqueness. As an extension of the HMAC-based one-time password (HOTP) algorithm, it has been adopted as In ...

(TOTP) authentication, and

biometric authentication Biometrics are body measurements and calculations related to human characteristics and features. Biometric authentication (or realistic authentication) is used in computer science as a form of identification and access control. It is also used t ...

. NordLayer enables to implement Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) measures, that are based on the principle "Never trust – always verify". NordLayer provides continuous authentication and identity verification to grant access to network resources based on multiple network access control rules. NordLayer employs the

Advanced Encryption Standard The Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), also known by its original name Rijndael (), is a specification for the encryption of electronic data established by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in 2001. AES is a variant ...

(AES) with 256-bit keys and the

ChaCha20 Salsa20 and the closely related ChaCha are stream ciphers developed by Daniel J. Bernstein. Salsa20, the original cipher, was designed in 2005, then later submitted to the eSTREAM European Union cryptographic validation process by Bernstein. Ch ...

stream cipher. NordLayer prevents cyber threats like

DDoS In computing, a denial-of-service attack (DoS attack) is a cyberattack in which the perpetrator seeks to make a machine or network resource unavailable to its intended users by temporarily or indefinitely disrupting services of a host co ...

, Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) attacks,

phishing Phishing is a form of social engineering and a scam where attackers deceive people into revealing sensitive information or installing malware such as viruses, worms, adware, or ransomware. Phishing attacks have become increasingly sophisticate ...

, data leaks, and others with features such as two-factor authentication (2FA), Always-On VPN,

kill switch A kill switch, also known more formally as an emergency brake, emergency stop (E-stop), emergency off (EMO), or emergency power off (EPO), is a safety mechanism used to shut off machinery in an emergency, when it cannot be shut down in the usu ...

, IP allowlisting, Cloud Firewall, Device Posture Security, and others. NordLayer's Network Visibility features allow for the monitoring of network traffic and performance, and devices connected to the network ensuring a thorough understanding of network dynamics. NordLayer's Device Posture Security provides a protective measure that ensures access is granted only to devices that meet per-defined security rules, thereby safeguarding networks from potential threats. NordLayer's Secure Web Gateway (SWG) provides features for

web security Internet security is a branch of computer security. It encompasses the Internet, browser security, web site security, and network security as it applies to other applications or operating systems as a whole. Its objective is to establish rules an ...

such as web filtering,

content filtering An Internet filter is software that restricts or controls the content an Internet user is capable to access, especially when utilized to restrict material delivered over the Internet via the Web, Email, or other means. Such restrictions can be appl ...

, application control, IP masking, and

traffic Traffic is the movement of vehicles and pedestrians along land routes. Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic laws and informal rules that may have developed over time to facilitate the orderly an ...

encryption In Cryptography law, cryptography, encryption (more specifically, Code, encoding) is the process of transforming information in a way that, ideally, only authorized parties can decode. This process converts the original representation of the inf ...

. Nordlayer currently has 30+ global dedicated server locations.

Cybersecurity researches

Working from home research

In 2020, NordVPN Research Teams conducted a study revealing that, on average, employees were spending more time at their desks compared to the pre-pandemic era. Utilizing data from its servers, NordVPN Teams examined the usage patterns of private business networks to gain insights into the remote work practices of employees. The findings indicated that individuals working from home experienced extended work hours and a heightened workload, suggesting a notable shift in work dynamics since the onset of the

Covid-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

Global Remote Work Index

In 2022, NordLayer launched The Global Remote Work Index, an international index that provides data and insights to identify the best countries for remote work. It is based on the evaluation of more than 60 variables in 66 countries, including the availability of broadband internet, the

cost of living The cost of living is the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living for an individual or a household. Changes in the cost of living over time can be measured in a cost-of-living index. Cost of living calculations are also used to compare t ...

, digital and physical infrastructure and the cost of labor. The 2023 update, in continuation of the previous year's edition, was assembled by assessing 108 destinations through the examination of four key criteria: online security, economic factors, digital and physical infrastructure, and social safety.

Black Friday research

In 2023, NordLayer disseminated information on safeguarding personal details against potential hacking threats. The cybersecurity firm reported a 2.3% year-on-year increase in Black Friday spending in 2022, while a separate study conducted by

Barclays Barclays PLC (, occasionally ) is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services ...

revealed a corresponding surge of up to 22% in losses associated with these sales.

B2B LinkedIn scam research

In 2023, NordLayer conducted a new research study by surveying 500 respondents across

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, and the

. The respondents, comprising adults aged 18 and above from non-governmental organizations, were specifically queried about the types of scams they encountered on the

LinkedIn LinkedIn () is an American business and employment-oriented Social networking service, social network. It was launched on May 5, 2003 by Reid Hoffman and Eric Ly. Since December 2016, LinkedIn has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Microsoft. ...

social media platform and the subsequent impact on their businesses. The surveyed subindustries encompassed business management and support services, e-commerce, education, finance and insurance, health care, information and communication, IT, professional and technical services, as well as consulting.

Hollywood hacking scenes: facts vs. fiction

In 2024, NordLayer published a study titled "Hollywood Hacking: Facts vs. Fiction", analyzing how accurately hacking scenes in popular films reflect real-world cybersecurity practices. By comparing iconic hacking moments from films like ''

Tron ''Tron'' (stylized as ''TRON'') is a 1982 American science fiction action adventure film written and directed by Steven Lisberger from a story by Lisberger and Bonnie MacBird. The film stars Jeff Bridges as Kevin Flynn, a computer programmer ...

'' and ''

The Emoji Movie ''The Emoji Movie'' is a 2017 American animated comedy film produced by Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation, and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing. The film was directed by Tony Leondis from a screenplay he co-wrote with Eric Si ...

'' to actual techniques, the study explained significant discrepancies, particularly around exaggerated timeframes, oversimplified interfaces, and unrealistic tools. The goal was to raise awareness of the misconceptions spread by media portrayals of hacking and educate the public on the true nature of cybersecurity threats.

Biggest GDPR fines study

In October 2024, NordLayer conducted a comprehensive study analyzing the largest General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) fines imposed since the law's implementation in 2018. This in-depth examination covered 10 significant cases, exploring the types of violations and the substantial fines levied on organizations, with a particular focus on sectors like technology, e-commerce, and finance. The report identifies common patterns of non-compliance, providing valuable insights into how businesses can better align with GDPR standards.

Reception

In a review published by ''

TechRadar ''TechRadar'' is an online technology publication owned by Future plc. It has editorial teams in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia that provide news and reviews of tech products and gadgets. It was launched in 2008 and expanded t ...

'' in August 2022, the reviewer wrote positively about NordLayer's interface, kill switch, private gateways, biometrics, and concluded that "NordLayer is an easy-to-use service, with simple but well-engineered quality apps, which makes it easy to secure employee access to your networks and the internet." In January 2023, a favorable review by ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' noted that NordLayer's security solutions are great for businesses "looking to monitor the security level of their company and encrypt all of their team members' accounts through a single portal". In September 2024, ''Emerging Tech Brew'' referenced NordLayer's insights into the rising number of cyberattacks on educational institutions, recognizing it as a valuable resource for organizations aiming to address these threats proactively.

References

{{VPN Virtual private network services Internet security Internet privacy Internet privacy software