University Hospital in Zielona Gora Secured Access to Workstations, Servers, and VPN with Rublon MFA
University Hospital in Zielona Gora, Poland, implemented Rublon MFA to strengthen the security of access to key IT resources. Protection was extended to administrator accounts and selected users, particularly management staff. Integration with on-premises Active Directory and user synchronization through Directory Sync simplified account management while maintaining convenience in day-to-day work.
“From the IT department’s perspective, the deployment was neither overly complex nor time-consuming. With well-planned activities and support from our implementation partner, the entire process went smoothly and enabled us to quickly achieve our goal of strengthening the security of access to the organization’s most important resources.”
Pawel Zielinski
Head of IT, University Hospital in Zielona Gora
Objectives
Secure access to workstations, Windows servers, and the VPN.
Reduce the risk of account takeover for administrators and selected users, particularly management staff.
Integrate with on-premises Active Directory and automate user synchronization.
Improve security without disrupting staff’s daily work.
Results
An additional layer of protection for access to workstations, servers, and the VPN for users covered by the deployment.
Automatic account synchronization through Directory Sync, reducing manual user management.
A smooth deployment with no downtime in hospital operations.
Ease of use and user acceptance, with no increase in authentication-related IT support requests.
Customer
Name:
Karol Marcinkowski University Hospital in Zielona Gora
Industry:
Healthcare
Location:
Zielona Gora, Poland
Website:
https://szpital.zgora.pl/
Description:
A healthcare facility providing medical services around the clock. Its IT environment supports the work of medical, administrative, and technical staff, as well as the processing of patient data, medical records, and administrative information. Secure access to these resources is essential to the continuity of hospital operations.
The Challenge
Protection Against Account Takeover
The hospital wanted to improve its overall security and reduce the risk of stolen or phished passwords being used to gain access. Administrator and management accounts required particular protection because they provided access to sensitive data and key systems. Security needed to be strengthened for workstations and servers, as well as for remote access through the VPN.
Integration with the User Directory
User identities were stored in on-premises Active Directory, which served as the central location for managing accounts, groups, and permissions. The hospital needed a multi-factor authentication (MFA) solution that would work with its existing infrastructure. Automatic user synchronization was also important to help manage staffing changes and grant or revoke access.
Ease of Deployment and Use
In a facility providing medical services around the clock, additional security had to be deployed without disrupting staff’s work. The hospital wanted to retain the login process users were familiar with and limit the IT team’s workload. The new authentication mechanism needed to improve protection without requiring time-consuming training or complicating daily tasks.
The Solution
University Hospital in Zielona Gora deployed Rublon MFA.
The project was completed with support from systems integrator 3PRO, which helped assess requirements, prepare the environment, and deploy the solution, and provided post-deployment support. This collaboration made it possible to tailor the configuration to the hospital’s needs and efficiently resolve technical issues as they arose.
Infrastructure Protection
Rublon MFA was deployed to protect access to workstations, Windows servers, and the VPN used for remote work. The first phase covered administrator accounts and selected users, particularly management staff. The additional authentication factor reduced the risk of unauthorized access if a password was compromised.
This approach allowed the deployment to begin with the accounts that had the highest privileges and were particularly important to the organization’s security. Extending access controls to external contractors and service partners remains one of the planned areas of development.
Service Integration and User Synchronization from Active Directory
On-premises Active Directory remained the central identity source, and users retained their existing domain credentials. Rublon MFA added another layer of protection to the existing login process without requiring a costly and time-consuming migration to a cloud environment. This was particularly important in a hospital environment, where many medical and administrative systems still rely on on-premises directory services and require strict control over access to resources.
Directory Sync automatically synchronizes users from on-premises Active Directory to Rublon MFA. Account creation, data updates, and access deactivation are handled in the directory service, and the changes are reflected in Rublon MFA. This reduced the need to manage accounts manually in multiple places, allowed the hospital to maintain full control over the user account lifecycle, and reduced the risk of administrative errors.
Convenience for Users and Administrators
Users quickly became accustomed to the additional login step. The hospital observed no significant reluctance to use MFA and no increase in authentication-related IT support requests. Rublon MFA operates reliably and strengthens access protection without a noticeable impact on ease of use. Its intuitive operation does not require users to have specialized technical knowledge.
The Benefits of Implementing Rublon MFA
| One MFA Platform | Rublon MFA provides consistent protection for access to workstations, servers, and the VPN, allowing different areas of the infrastructure to be secured through a single platform. |
| Protection of Key Resources | MFA secures access to workstations, Windows servers, and the VPN for accounts covered by the deployment. |
| Reduced Risk of Account Takeover | The additional authentication factor makes it harder to exploit stolen or phished passwords belonging to administrators and selected users. |
| Simpler User Management | Synchronization with Active Directory reduces manual account creation and updates, as well as the risk of administrative errors. |
| Convenience in Daily Work | Users accepted the additional login step, and authentication-related IT support requests did not increase. |
| Smooth Deployment | Rublon MFA enabled the rapid deployment of additional access protection without unnecessary complications or downtime. |
The Outcome
University Hospital in Zielona Gora strengthened the security of access to workstations, Windows servers, and the VPN by protecting administrator accounts and selected users. Deploying MFA significantly reduced the risk of unauthorized logins to critical systems, particularly for privileged accounts used by administrators. Integration with on-premises Active Directory and automatic account synchronization simplified identity management, and the deployment proceeded smoothly without downtime.
The deployment of Rublon MFA at University Hospital in Zielona Gora demonstrates that effective security does not have to involve complex procedures or make work more difficult for staff using IT systems. Positive user experiences and Rublon MFA’s reliable operation prompted the hospital to plan further phases of development. Rublon MFA is viewed as an important element of the organization’s long-term cybersecurity strategy, and the hospital intends to gradually extend its use to additional systems and services that require stronger access protection.