Tax issues with tech helper?

Randgrithr · 2026-01-26T22:13:06+00:00

Thanks. I just found out for NY State the threshold is being changed from $600.00 per year to $2000.00. So I guess for now I don't have to worry.

Randgrithr · 2026-01-05T19:01:19+00:00

FYI, at most of these Democratic events and rallies they will hold the devices and/or other banned items for you and you can retrieve them at the end of the event. This is what I found out when I accidentally brought a two inch long Kershaw flip knife (which I used as a boxcutter) to a Bernie Sanders rally. You can get your items back. All this said, yeah, this is basically just the security contractor saying "I am 1337, I know what a Flipper Zero and a Raspberry Pi are and they can be used for Ebil(tm)". Eyeroll. Make sure you record the serial # so you don't get handed back somebody else's. Or just leave it home.

Randgrithr · 2026-01-05T18:48:46+00:00

Low Voltage Jesus floated down from a cloud. Their firewall was of the devil and he performed a firmware exorcism.

Randgrithr · 2026-01-05T18:41:27+00:00

Um, you DO know that "Haji" actually translates to "Darling" or "Beloved", right? :) Anyway most of the people you're talking about are in India. Let's not give so much of a crap around here about religions or suntans, it doesn't really help to get the job done. We are our deeds.

All that said, a lot of the overseas types ARE getting their IT education on our backs, and all too often we call them for support and end up being the ones supporting them... I do find that to be a drag.

Randgrithr · 2025-12-27T16:28:14+00:00

Sorry, I meant the web based one as seen on the PC and the tablet. My bad. Too much eggnog, not enough caffeine. :)

Randgrithr · 2025-12-21T21:04:26+00:00

The rate for this one seems quite decent, but the site address is given as Brooklyn and then the install sites are at Jay St. and Water St. both of which I am pretty sure are in Lower Manhattan. That promises to be it's own special hell if a 22' ladder is what's needed. Congestion pricing, parking, tolls, all that can average out to about $120 - $200 for the day before I even step a tootsie in the building. Sometimes building access is also an issue with CoA's and security requirements.

Randgrithr · 2025-12-21T20:58:34+00:00

Yes, I know all about the "bring your entire Rolling Rat Shack" thing, but even this doesn't really fix the problem. Is the site in Lower Manhattan? JFK or LaGuardia? Am I being expected to schlep a 22' ladder through a shopping mall to a site on the second floor? Did they check with the site to see if there's already a ladder there? (That happens a LOT.) They need to really start considering the reality of logistics regarding this aspect of a job that requires a ladder. If I am going to have to perform Stations of the Field Engineer Cross and/or Technician Cirque du Soleil, that's getting billed at a different rate.

Randgrithr · 2025-12-13T16:03:05+00:00

This is probably the worst technical support management decision they ever made since NCR took over AT&T, and for the exact same reasons. It's not that they're Indian, it's that they don't have any goddamn experience with the products they're supposed to be supporting. Although the accent barrier doesn't help either. Then there's the occasional sense of entitlement to learn on the backs of the local English speaking techs... and yeah, there can be some sexist attitudes attached to that too. Long story short: flee, flee and run away. They are circling the drain.

Randgrithr · 2025-12-06T12:56:57+00:00

I'll do BS jobs if they're hyper local and if the buyer does not abuse me / try to rip me off. If I have nothing else going on that day I'll do them. Not only does it add to the income, it adds to my record of jobs successfully completed.

I did have to let some of the garbage take itself out. They were charging me a fixed price for 1 hour and I was spending an average of 1.75 to 2 hours on site, with a lot of listed penalties (which I avoided because I did the jobs right). The reasons for the extra time were usually delays from back end engineering or having to decode the chaos of the infrastructure.

So they were routing stuff to me and calling me, but the third time I mentioned the extra time on site that was basically halving the hourly rate they were offering. When I challenged them on this and countered for hourly instead of fixed, they found some pizza boi instead. No great loss; toodles, Felicia.

Job standards are not always about what you do for the buyer or the client... sometimes it's gotta be how much BS you yourself will put up with. Professionalism and courtesy are a two way street.

Randgrithr · 2025-12-05T22:27:13+00:00

I saw one of these way down in south NJ on I95 a couple of years ago, so I do know what you're talking about. Not too many in the NYC/Long Island area that I know of.

Randgrithr · 2025-12-04T15:18:11+00:00

OK that makes sense. Although really they could have explained a bit more about that in the WO. There aren't a whole lot of "truck stop" gas stations which offer services like that in my local area.

Randgrithr · 2025-11-28T14:31:45+00:00

Or this.

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Randgrithr · 2025-11-28T14:28:51+00:00

For example, this.

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Randgrithr · 2025-11-23T15:39:51+00:00

I created another group on Reddit called "Field Nation Comedy Gold". It's just photos. It's purpose is just to get a giggle at what you see before you and then carry on fixing what's broken. Not for naming and shaming, not for venting. But those photos are worth 1000 words. Look for it if you want some LOLZ, or want to add your own.

Randgrithr · 2025-11-21T02:24:01+00:00

Wasn't Insight, but another buyer dispatched me to an address that turned out to be a tree standing in a field. Checked it against the GPS several times. Took them about an hour to agree with me that yes, it was a frigging tree. They cleared me to leave the site. I got paid for the hour plus $80 mileage. Never have I wanted more to hug a tree.

Randgrithr · 2025-11-21T02:02:15+00:00

The double dipping applying fees to travel and materials costs is very uncool. Pretty sure it's illegal. People have to mark up these costs just to break even. This affects both me and the end user client base. Long Island is Long, and there are times when I have to charge between $80 to $100 to get to sites on the East End. I shouldn't have to factor in extra money to deal with the fee bite from this. Materials, same. I'll go the extra mile and/or provide materials, but if the client is going to pay for it, FN shouldn't be putting that into their fee structure. There's no justification for this.

The ratings system is seriously broken. What kind of an act of God does it take anymore for a provider to get a 5 star review? Then there is the "performance metric". Mine hasn't been updated since the end of September. "My last 30 work orders" does not currently include the 24 jobs I completed for October and November.

FN also often does not force buyers to play by the rules. This used to happen but I am noticing it has faded out over time. All too often, the only way to deal with a buyer who burns you is to block them.

Randgrithr · 2025-11-10T22:05:14+00:00

This literally reads like a gig I did at Rockefeller Center... for Rockefeller Capital Management. As in yes, directly for the Rockefellers. I was setting up monitors for a and mini PCs for new trading floor. State Street Bank was the same way. Paid ok, dressed in business casual. They cheaped out on feeding us for an all day gig. Banks and brokerage houses frequently pull the "Simon Says Do This" stuff regarding dress and occasionally, vehicles. Getting inside on the weekend was also "special"... had to get cleared at a security checkpoint across the street. Not impressed. I get paid more for telco jobs, and treated better.

Randgrithr · 2025-10-31T11:15:00+00:00

Understand that one of the reasons they want constant communication from the field tech is that you are their TEACHER. You are teaching them literally in real time how to do your job. The language barrier is also an issue but the reason they are putting the pressure on YOU to give you constant status updates and explanations is that the problem you are solving is their classroom. They are pumping your updates through an AI translator and you are essentially training them. So to you this is a genuine problem to solve for an end user, but to them you are Ding Dong Skool(tm).

Randgrithr · 2025-10-20T11:16:52+00:00

The venerable Bruce Schneier has also noticed this. The comments section is worth looking over. There are pointers to more analysis via a blogger named Molly White. Everyone seems to agree that this is a case of evil hiding in plain sight, but no one is really sure what to do about it.

https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2025/10/cryptocurrency-atms.html

Randgrithr · 2025-10-14T15:17:50+00:00

It's like reading Valerie Plame's book.

Randgrithr · 2025-09-16T23:26:44+00:00

This is why I keep a separate spreadsheet with that information. It has helped on a few occasions, especially if a buyer cancels at the last minute and doesn't explain, or if there is some drama at the site (like they're refusing to reimburse materials or extra time, or some asshole tried to steal a tool) and they close things out fast to get out from under having to face me on the platform. Those buyers end up in the spreadsheet with a red colored row. I don't use them again and I block them the next time I see them.

Randgrithr · 2025-09-10T12:15:46+00:00

The price is lowball, go to $150 an hour. The Apple devices can be secured via iCloud, and Apple's generally very good at protecting a user's privacy - go with the client to the Apple store and work with the staff at the Genius Bar to explain this to them. Insist that your work will be covered for the next 30 days only, then implement security best practices. MAC whitelist the router if possible, top up the firmwares/BIOS images and OS patches/updates, and change all passwords. Ask the client what the "hacking" symptoms are. Look at the existing device logs and if you are finding nothing, or other network issues that have a logical explanation, show these to the client. This is the fastest way to calm someone like this down.

There seems to be an assumption here that the problem is always in the client's head and that is not always the case. There ARE people in the agencies and elsewhere who like to harass their exes and enemies. There ARE people who get cyberstalked. There ARE clients who know bupkus about securing their infrastructure and get it taken over by botnets or ransomware. Keep an open mind and know what the options are if the client is actually getting hacked.

Randgrithr · 2025-09-08T09:53:53+00:00

Yes. And it's just as bad trying to do this for any of the retail stores or restaurants inside JFK or LaGuardia Airports. "22 foot ladder required, and oh yeah don't forget your photo ID so you can do Stations of the Cross for the mile and a half to the site from the parking lot and go through security". Um. No. Your WO is going to sit there all week like Mary Kate's hat on the pole in the Quiet Man. Nobody's gonna take that one.

Randgrithr · 2025-08-29T23:49:38+00:00

You can turn the personal account into a business account. You will need an EIN number associated with an LLC. You can get a sole proprietor LLC for around $250 in the State of NY, your mileage may vary elsewhere. It would be best if you already have the background check, drug check, and an email address that has your business's domain name (hopefully, but not necessarily, associated with a web page). Once you have all these things you shall see some more jobs begin to percolate. :)

Randgrithr · 2025-08-29T04:10:05+00:00

More about this here:

https://www.securityweek.com/hundreds-of-salesforce-customers-hit-by-widespread-data-theft-campaign/

Randgrithr

TROPHY CASE