A VPN gateway is the endpoint that accepts encrypted remote connections, authenticates the user or device, decrypts the tunnel, and forwards traffic into a private network. It often sits at the edge of a home, office, or cloud environment and acts as the bridge between public Internet traffic and internal resources.
In cyber security, the VPN gateway is a high-value trust boundary. If it is misconfigured, weakly authenticated, or compromised, an attacker can gain the same network reach as a legitimate remote user. Defenders therefore treat it like critical infrastructure: strong encryption, multi-factor authentication, restricted routing, logging, patching, and hardened firmware or operating systems are all important. In real attacks, VPN gateways are often targeted first because they are exposed to the Internet and can provide direct access deeper into the network.