Hello there and welcome
When creating an account, you are required to create a strong password which will be the password you will be used to access your page. On the hive blockchain, when you create an account for the first time, you are given keys we call the login keys, these are the keys you use to sign into your accounts and perform various tasks such as posting, commenting, and withdrawing funds from your accounts. What if someone gets access to your accounts or you get logged out? Thanks to the educative newbie initiative program, I am going to talk about ways you can do to get back your accounts.
Designed uisng canvas
What would be your next move to recover your accounts?
In an incident where you get logged out of your page and when you try logging back in, you are told that your keys are not working, unlike other platforms, the hive is a decentralized chain, which means there is no central administration where you get to contact for them to retrieve your accounts for you. But one thing you can do to get it back immediately you released that you are logged out is to try out the recovery process.
The hive blockchain upon your creation gives you 5 keys for which each key has its use.
Let’s take a look at these keys.
Memo Key: This is the less useful key on the chain, it is used to reveal private messages that have been sent by another hive user, and it is also used in sending private messages (Encrypt and Decrypt).
Posting Key: This key speaks for itself, the posting key on the hive keys is used for posting on your blog and also for commenting on the hive blockchain.
Active Key: One of the most important keys that should be safeguarded will on the hive blockchain is the active key, this key gives you access to your fun and also in transferring funds out of your accounts. Without the active key, you can’t access your funds.
Owner Key: The most superior among all the keys is the owner, with the owner key, you can get access to all the keys on the hive blockchain. It is only needed when you want to recover or change your keys on Hive.
Master Key: The Master key is required in case your keys get leaked and you want to recover your accounts.
Now that we know the functions of the various keys, let’s take a look at what will be done in case they ever get stolen and you are logged out.
Whenever an account is created, you are automatically given a trustee in case you ever get locked out, this your trustee will help you in recovering the accounts back. But then, most people don’t know who their trustees are. The next thing I am going to show you is how to check who your trustee is and it is also advisable to change it to a close friend you trust who is also on the hive blockchain and will come to your aid in case you ever need him.
https://hiveblocks.com/@username
In other to check who your trustee is, copy the link above and paste it on a web browser, changing the 
Screenshot from hiveblock
The screenshot above shows us who my current trustee is which is OCDB. But the question is, how do we contact OCDB for recovery help in case we are ever in need of it?
So, the next thing I am going to do is show you steps on how to change your recovery accounts trustee to a trusted person.
On the peakD website on your browser, click on the 3 dots next to settings on yiur blog, locate, and click on Keys & Permissions.
It takes you to the next page where you find
Account Keys, Authorities, Change passwords, and Recovery Accounts.
Click on the Recovery Accounts as shown in the screenshot above.
After clicking on the recovery accounts you are taken through some understanding of Recovery and what it means to change your Recovery Accounts. Scroll down and you will see
Change Recovery Accounts as shown in the screenshot above. Click on it.
A pop-up appears and you are asked to enter your new recovery accounts and your owner's private key to show that you are the one changing it.
After you are done click on confirm and in a few seconds, you will see that the recovery accounts process will start and will be handed over to your preferred accounts in 1 month.
NB: it is not advisable to set the recovery accounts to yourself. This is because I’m a case where you lose access to your accounts, you will have no one to recover it for you since you have set the recovery accounts to yourself.
Possible causes that could have resulted in your account being hacked.
There are so many ways and procedures these scammers take to get access to your accounts.
One of the most common ways is through comments, these individuals’ comments on your post telling you that you have won a sum of the hive and that you should click on the link they provide. When you click on the provided link, it looks just like the same logging page of the hive and you are asked to log in. Mind you when you come across such a thing, you should know that it is a clone login page and when you input your details, the scammers get access to your accounts.
No hive authority will come to you personally to give you a gift telling you, you have earned it. Unless it’s a contest you have participated in and when you do win, it will be transferred and later on a post will be written letting you know that you have won the contest.
Another possible way in which your keys might get leaked and your accounts get hacked is through your post. Most new users sometimes copy their keys and mix them with their posts without knowing that they’ve done such a thing, if these individuals get to know the mistake you’ve done, they tend to use that as an opportunity to explore your accounts.
One should always be careful as to where he or she stores the hive keys they got after signing up.
How does having recovery accounts help in this situation and what do you understand by recovery accounts?
A recovery account is having second accounts you can always look up to in case your main account ever gets hacked. Most people on the blockchain have recovery accounts that stand on standby and are used when needed.
Having a recovery account as a Hivian is very essential, you might say you will never fall victim, but you don’t know when you might make a mistake. Therefore, having a recovery account is important because it helps you get back your accounts in case where it ever gets hacked.
In a situation where you sleep and wake up and are released that your keys have been changed and you have been logged out, if you have a recovery account, you won’t have to panic or call someone to assist you. You just go ahead and take the steps involved in getting back your accounts.
Conclusion
Knowing your various keys and when you use them is very important as a hivian. In an incident where you get hacked, you need to act smart and faster than your attacker in other not to lose your accounts for good. Having a recovery account always helps in all ways and if you haven’t changed yours, I advise that you do so because you don’t know when the need for it might arise.
All screenshots above was taken from peakd and Hiveblocks
