🧑‍💻 Even hackers aren't safe from layoffs in this economy

Hey, remote work fam! This is Remote Insider your favorite spot to get up to speed on what's going on in the world of remote work and digital nomadism. In this email, we talk about...

• why even hackers are getting laid off in this economy

• how freelancing will shape the future of work

• is this the beginning of the end for Zoom?

• and how to build the perfect WFH office

But first, tax season is right around the corner, and if you’re like a majority of people who left it until the last possible moment here are a few tips to help you get started…

💸 How to deduct work expenses from your taxes as a remote worker

It’s time to pay the tax man again. It’s not the most fun part of the year but we have collected a few tips to help you know what you can deduct from your taxes as a remote worker and what you can’t.

Unfortunately, if you’re a W2 employee even if you’re working remotely there’s not a lot you can deduct since the 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act.

However, if you’re self-employed/freelancer or own a business there are a few things you can look into:

Home office deduction: If you use your home office space for work purposes, and work purposes only, you may be eligible for the home office deduction. The desk in your bedroom does not count sadly. But if you qualify in some cases you can claim up to $5 per square foot of space used to a maximum of 300 square feet.

Self-employment tax: Even if you are an employee of a company if you earn more than $400 on freelance work you must pay self-employment tax on that income. The good news for self-employed taxpayers is that half of the self-employment tax is deductible.

Health care premiums: If you work for yourself and weren't eligible for an employer-provided health care plan in 2022, you can likely claim the cost of your health insurance premiums as an above-the-line deduction.

Now, we have to say we’re not tax or financial experts, so make sure you do your own research before filing your taxes. You can start with this article by CNET

👾 Latest Victims of Tech Layoffs: Hackers

It seems even hackers aren’t safe in today’s tech economy.

According to a recent report, the surge of ransomware attacks that we’ve experienced over the last 3 years is on a decline and as a result, hacker groups are laying off their call-center spammers.

One hacker group known as “Conti” laid-off 45 call-center operators last year, according to an executive at the intelligence company Red Sense.

So why is the hacker business struggling?

Ransomware attacks boomed during the COVID pandemic with the rise of remote work with the money collected by ransomware attackers in 2020 increased more than 4X from 2019. Much of that was concentrated on US-based small businesses that don’t have the cybersecurity abilities of larger companies.

However, last year the DOJ took notice and formed several internal teams with the sole purpose of taking down these hacker groups.

And so far this pressure from the US DOJ is working with the total revenue generated by hackers being cut almost in half from 2021 to 2022.

And it’s not just the US going after hacker groups.

Research and consulting group Gartner reported last June that nearly 1/3 of countries are planning to launch their own laws governing ransomware by 2025. That's a huge leap up from a year earlier when just 1% planned to introduce ransomware regulation.

Thanks to all this pressure it’s becoming harder and harder for hackers to generate revenue, thus hacker groups like Conti are laying off their spam teams. Learn more here

🏝️ Why Are So Many Americans Moving to Bali? Our Friend Uptin Investigates

🚨Word on The Web is…

💻 Freelancing is likely to define the future of work

🤝 Inclusion: Employment of people with disabilities surges to a record high thanks to remote work

☎️ Zoom: Does this mark the beginning of the end for the video conferencing giant?

😢 Inequality: New study finds that remote work can widen the divide between high and low-income consumers

⚖️ Balance: What does work-life balance mean in the new world of work?

🛖 Here’s How This Guy Transformed His Shed Into The Perfect WFH Office

Three principles everyone who works from home should keep in mind when designing their WFH office and how Jason Aten created his dream office from his backyard shed

📆 Upcoming Events:

April 25-26: Running Remote [📍 Lisbon, Portugal] - Largest remote work conference in the world for enterprises and SMEs

May 24-28: Vivel [📍 Multiple Locations, Turkey] - networking meets music at this one-of-a-kind conference for location-independent professionals

June 16-19: Camp Indie [📍 Kent, Connecticut] - adult summer camp & conference for digital nomads & those living an unconventional life

June 25-July 2: Bansko Nomad Fest [📍 Bansko, Bulgaria] - for digital nomads, freelancers, and founders in the mountains of Bulgaria

Here’s what other subscribers had to say about the last edition of Remote Insider:

Thanks for spending a few minutes with us If you are enjoying this newsletter consider sharing it with someone you think may like it by sending this link 👇

Send them this link!

That's it from us this week, hope you have an amazing day!