In addition, traveling employees like salespeople need an equally secure and reliable way to connect to their business's computer network from remote locations. One popular technology to accomplish these goals is a VPN (virtual private network). A VPN is a private network that uses a public network (usually the Internet) to connect remote sites or users together. The VPN uses virtual connections routed through the Internet from the business's private network to the remote site or employee. By using a VPN, businesses ensure security -- anyone intercepting the encrypted data can't read it. VPN was not the first technology to make remote connections. Several years ago, the most common way to connect computers between multiple offices was by using a leased line.