Capital income is money earned from assets rather than wages. It includes profits, dividends, rent, interest, and income from intellectual property such as patents, software, and licenses. In economic and tax systems, this income can be separated from labor income because it is tied to ownership and asset returns, not day-to-day work.
In cyber security, capital income matters because it often flows through valuable digital systems: payment platforms, brokerage accounts, accounting software, royalty ledgers, and IP portfolios. Attackers may try to steal credentials to redirect payouts, alter financial records, extort companies that depend on asset revenue, or steal intellectual property that generates future income. Defenders protect these streams with strong authentication, transaction monitoring, audit logs, segregation of duties, and tight control over privileged access. When capital income is disrupted, the impact can be immediate on cash flow and long term on valuation.