SCION Secure Access Groups: the modern alternative to MPLS, SD-WAN, and VPNs

Enterprise WAN solutions were not built for today's threat landscape. SCION Secure Access Groups replaces MPLS, SD-WAN, and VPNs with a private, invite-only WAN that makes your infrastructure invisible to attackers, resilient by design.

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What is SCION?

SCION Secure Access Groups enterprise WAN architecture diagram by Anapaya

Trusted by industry leaders

Why enterprises are replacing MPLS, SD-WAN, and VPNs?

The Internet has changed. Geopolitical tensions, AI-accelerated cyberattacks, and increasingly distributed operations have made legacy WAN architectures a liability. MPLS, SD-WAN, and VPNs were built for a simpler era, and their limitations now translate into direct business risk.

Expanding attack
surface

SD-WAN and VPN endpoints are visible and discoverable on the public Internet, a growing liability as AI accelerates cyberattacks.

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Concentration
risk

A single-provider WAN means a single point of failure. One outage, one compromise, and your entire network is at risk.

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No control over routing paths

Traffic can route through congested networks, untrusted jurisdictions, or single points of failure, without your knowledge.

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High cost,
low flexibility

MPLS dedicated lines are expensive and slow to adapt. Extending to cloud environments or new partners adds cost and complexity.

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#1

cause of outages over the last 3 years has been networking & connectivity issues

92%

of organizations are concerned about ransomware attacks due to VPN vulnerabilities

50%

of total zero-days exploited impacted enterprise networks in 2025

What is SCION Secure Access Groups?

SCION Secure Access Groups is a new feature of Anapaya EDGE that fundamentally changes how enterprise WANs are built. Instead of securing exposed endpoints with overlays, it makes your entire network invisible from the start. Enterprises can form invite-only private groups within existing SCION networks.

Only explicitly authorized participants can join. No one outside the group can see the network, its endpoints, or the paths traffic takes. For organisations seeking an MPLS replacement or an SD-WAN and VPN alternative, SCION Secure Access Groups offers both, without the trade-offs of either.

What is SCION?

A secure WAN alternative built for modern enterprises

Replace legacy VPN, MPLS, and SD-WAN with a single, SCION-powered architecture.

Reduced attack surface

Your WAN, endpoints, and data paths are invisible to unauthorized entities, preventing cyberattacks such as DDoS and ransomware.

Cyber-resilience

A multi-provider setup eliminates concentration risk and single points of failure. SCION's multi-path capability switches traffic automatically if a path goes down.

Scalable and flexible

The architecture scales on demand. Add new offices, cloud environments, or third-party partners without added operational complexity.

Cost-efficient

More economical than private lines, SD-WAN, and VPN solutions, without compromising on security or resilience.

A cut above the rest

The Secure Swiss Finance Network (SSFN)

The Swiss Financial Industry led by the Swiss National Bank and SIX raised their standards to address
the above threats and created the most secure, reliable financial network in the world - the SSFN.

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How does SCION Secure Access Groups work?

Whether you are migrating from MPLS or replacing an existing SD-WAN setup, deployment follows three straightforward steps.

1

Install Anapaya EDGE

Deploy Anapaya EDGE across your entire ecosystem: offices, data centers, cloud environments, and partner sites, to enable
SCION connectivity at every node.

2

Register Private Paths

Register private SCION path segments in the Anapaya Hidden Segment Directory (HSD).
Paths are only visible to explicitly authorized group members, invisible to everyone else.

3

Manage from CONSOLE

Configure access control, group membership, and routing policies from a single, centralized platform via Anapaya CONSOLE.
Simple, intuitive, and designed for operational teams.

Explore SAG use cases

From a bank's private multi-cloud network to a hospital connecting securely with its suppliers, see how organizations can replace MPLS, SD-WAN, and VPNs with SCION Secure Access Groups.

Read the blog

SCION Secure Access Groups use cases: private multi-cloud and secure partner connectivity

How does SCION compare to MPLS, SD-WAN and VPNs?

SCION Secure Access Groups is not an incremental upgrade, it is a fundamentally different model. Here is how it compares to the solutions your organization may be evaluating or already running.

Security model

Attack surface

DDoS protection

Provider lock-in

Failover

Cloud/hybrid ready

Path control

Cost

MPLS

Isolated private lines

Low

High

Yes, single provider

Automated, fast

Complex & expensive

Full control by provider

High (dedicated lines)

SD-WAN / VPN

Overlay on public Internet

High, discoverable endpoints

None

Yes for SD-WAN only

Automated, but slow due to Internet latency

Yes

Limited

Medium

SCION SAG

Invisible at network layer

Low

Built-in by design

No, multi-provider

Automated, multi-path

Yes

Full control by user

Lower than MPLS and SD-WAN

Secure Enterprise WANs with SCION Secure Access Groups

Watch the on-demand webinar and see SCION Secure Access Groups in action. Our engineers walk you through the architecture, the deployment process, and real enterprise use cases.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the benefits of SD-WAN and why isn't it enough?

SD-WAN benefits include lower cost than MPLS, greater flexibility, and easier management across distributed locations. However, SD-WAN routes traffic over the public Internet, leaving endpoints visible and discoverable, a critical vulnerability as AI accelerates cyberattacks. SCION Secure Access Groups preserves the flexibility and cost advantages of SD-WAN while enforcing security at the network layer, making your infrastructure invisible by default.

What is an MPLS alternative for enterprises?

SCION Secure Access Groups is a next-generation MPLS alternative that delivers the same strong isolation as dedicated private lines, without the high cost, single-provider dependency, or limited flexibility. Unlike MPLS, it supports hybrid cloud environments and multi-provider configurations natively.

What is the difference between MPLS and SD-WAN?

MPLS uses dedicated private connections for high security but comes with high cost and low flexibility. SD-WAN routes traffic over the public Internet, offering more flexibility at lower cost, but with increased exposure to cyber threats. SCION Secure Access Groups combines the security of MPLS with the flexibility of SD-WAN, without the trade-offs of either.

Is SCION Secure Access Groups suitable for enterprises not yet on the SCION Internet?

SCION Secure Access Groups is built on the SCION Internet and requires Anapaya EDGE to be deployed. If your organization is evaluating the SCION Internet for the first time, our team can walk you through what adoption looks like for your specific infrastructure. Book a demo to get started.

How is SCION Secure Access Groups different from a VPN?

VPNs encrypt traffic but still expose endpoints and paths on the public Internet, making them discoverable and a high-value target for cyberattacks. SCION Secure Access Groups enforces security at the network layer: your endpoints and paths are completely invisible to anyone outside the authorized group. There is nothing to discover and nothing to attack.

What are the cost benefits compared to MPLS?

MPLS dedicated lines are among the most expensive connectivity options for enterprises. SCION Secure Access Groups operates over the SCION Internet, which eliminates the need for dedicated physical circuits. Combined with reduced operational complexity and a multi-provider setup, organizations typically see meaningful cost reductions, particularly as they scale to new locations or partners.

Can SCION Secure Access Groups support multi-cloud environments?

Yes. SCION Secure Access Groups was specifically designed for hybrid and multi-cloud architectures. Your on-premises infrastructure, AWS environments, Azure tenants, and any other sites can be included in the same private trust domain, with no publicly reachable endpoints and no single provider dependency.

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See SCION Secure Access Groups in action

Schedule a free demo with our specialists and see how SCION Secure Access Groups can replace your MPLS, SD-WAN, or VPN architecture.

SCION Secure Access Groups: the modern alternative to MPLS, SD-WAN, and VPNs

Enterprise WAN solutions were not built for today's threat landscape. SCION Secure Access Groups replaces MPLS, SD-WAN, and VPNs with a private, invite-only WAN that makes your infrastructure invisible to attackers, resilient by design.

Trusted by industry leaders

Why enterprises are replacing MPLS, SD-WAN, and VPNs?

Expanding attack surface

Concentration risk

No control over routing paths

High cost, low flexibility

#1

92%

50%

What is SCION Secure Access Groups?

A secure WAN alternative built for modern enterprises

Reduced attack surface

Cyber-resilience

Scalable and flexible

Cost-efficient

A cut above the rest

The Secure Swiss Finance Network (SSFN)

How does SCION Secure Access Groups work?

1

Install Anapaya EDGE

2

Register Private Paths

3

Manage from CONSOLE

Explore SAG use cases

How does SCION compare to MPLS, SD-WAN and VPNs?

Secure Enterprise WANs with SCION Secure Access Groups

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the benefits of SD-WAN and why isn't it enough?

What is an MPLS alternative for enterprises?

What is the difference between MPLS and SD-WAN?

Is SCION Secure Access Groups suitable for enterprises not yet on the SCION Internet?

How is SCION Secure Access Groups different from a VPN?

What are the cost benefits compared to MPLS?

Can SCION Secure Access Groups support multi-cloud environments?

See SCION Secure Access Groups in action

Expanding attack
surface

Concentration
risk

High cost,
low flexibility