The job market is shit right now for every single job.

This gets better only through wealth redistribution.

Do what you can to live, and do what you can to remain human.

Just letting you know, I’m currently without a job due to ethical reasons as well and it’s honestly been great for my health. I understand you might not be in the same position as me, but you do sound like an ethical person. If I were in your shoes I wouldn’t go back, but I’m not you. Only you can make that decision.

Good luck my dude. It's hard to stand up for what is right in this world.

Tanking your life is not going to stop a genocide. It's a noble cause, but it's one that won't make a difference. Stay at your job and search while you have stability. Yes life sucks and this is part of the shitty decisions that comes with it.

I have had 3 career changes in my life. Each one has become more rewarding than the last. Getting a new job usually took 6-9 months and some tenacity.

Use this time to beef up your skills, get certification. Also go exploring, go hiking, get a new hobby. As you get older, you start to realize those little non-work moments where you had time are some of the best ones, at least I did.

On the job front, some ideas: use AI to match the job you are applying keywords to the keywords on your resume and cover letter. Or, if you’re anti AI, consult an employment coach to beef up your resume. Get a decent LinkedIn profile and get a little active on it. Reach out to recruiters in the industry and let them know you’re looking.

Times are very chaotic now. With AI coming to the forefront and also the mood swings of a certain government, some businesses are holding off on hiring for the dust to settle, but there are companies still growing who need people.

If you hold ethics in high regard as you say, no amount of money is going to be worth selling your soul to the Devil at the expense of your mental health each day.

I suppose it’s not possible to set up an arrangement where you don’t do any support for that specific client? Your situation sounds like it really sucks OP, I’m sorry.

I’ve worked really hard to never work in the for-profit world because of how immoral I find it, and I definitely leave salary on the table because of it. I respect you for sticking to your principles.

I'd probably try to get the job back, if it were me.

That client is going to be a client whether or not you're there. Their views are going to be the same whether or not you're there. And the company is going to pay somebody to do the job whether that's you or not. And what's going to happen is going to happen regardless of what you do. Food and shelter are needs for you. You suffering helps nobody.

As for finding work, I suspect a lot of places are trying to leverage AI and fewer bodies. (I do hope that trend dies.). But we see a lot of layoffs in IT the last few months.

I wouldn't work for any Chinese company with the ongoing genocide of Uyghurs. Unless the alternative was ending up on the street and slowly dying a death of neglect myself. In that case I guess I'd die a slow death of the soul. A fantastic, really short story addressing this moral conundrum is Ursala K Le Guin's classic, The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas.

Cybersecurity? Aren't there a bunch of remote jobs for that? Have you tried applying world-wide?