Overall, I see the importance of this move. If Steemit can improve security, increase the speed of execution, and reduce expenses, then I am game.

The problem occurs because many of us have been lazy with our Steem keys, so now that the change is live (see announcement here), some of us are feeling a little be of discomfort.

We were lazy so we used the master key for everything, from logging into Steemit.com to other 3rd party applications. It was so much easier to use 1 password (the mast password) for all things.

Advice For Steem Keys

1. Print out all of your keys and store them in a safe location.
2. Store your keys electronically in a way that is difficult for others to find them, but not for you to find them.
   • The harder something is to use, the less likely you will use it and the more likely you will lose it.
   • Consider encrypting the file. Encrypt at your own risk. The file is only valuable to you if you can both lock and unlock it.
3. Learn what each key does and use the keys appropriately.
   • Understand the hierarchical nature of the keys.
   • Use keys appropriate for the actions you need to perform.
4. Never, never, never lose your Steem password. Steemit cannot recover your password.
   • Your Steem password is the "key" to rule them all. Keep your precious safe.

Which keys should I use?

The following information can be located in your Steemit Wallet. I am providing it here for your convenience.

Use your Posting Key to:

• Publish a post or comment
• Edit a post or comment
• Upvote or downvote
• Resteem content
• Follow people
• Mute accounts

Use your Active Key to:

• Transfer tokens
• Power STEEM up or down
• SBD conversion
• Vote for witnesses
• Place an order on an exchange
• Certain profile changes
• Publish a Witness price feed
• Create a new user

Use your Owner Key to:

• Reset Owner, Active, and Posting keys
• Recover your account
• Decline voting rights

Use your Memo Key to:

• Send an encrypted message
• View an encrypted message

I Changed My Steem Password and Generated New Keys

I periodically change my keys, which can be a real pain, but it seemed like it was time to do so again, especially in light of the condenser being split into separate social and wallet applications.

These are the steps I followed:

1. Find my most recent copy of my keys. Remember to key a hard copy of your Steem Password and keys.
2. Log into the Steemit Wallet and select Password
   
3. Enter your current password. Press Click to Generate Password.
   
4. I immediately copied that password into a file and immediately printed the file.
5. Re-enter the generated password
6. Read the checkboxes. Do what they say. And then click them.
7. Click Update Password
8. I immediately logged into Steemit Wallet with that password. I added all four of the keys to my previous document and printed the document again. Be sure to reveal the keys before you print the document again.

I Continued The Audit on Steemd.com

Then I went over to Steemd.com/@sumatranate and review the applications that I had granted posting rights to. There were several apps that I had not used recently so I revoked their posting privilege.

In this example, I will revoke posting access to fundition.app

1. Paste the following Steem Connect line into a web browser and click enter: https://v2.steemconnect.com/revoke/@fundition.app
   (replace Hive account@fundition.app with the app you want to remove posting rights to)

2. Click Continue
   

3. Enter your Steem user id and Active Key
   

4. A confirmation message will appear
   

I Want To Hear From You

I know I provide you a lot of information. And although the steps should be straightforward, each Steem user is personally responsible for the decision we make with our accounts.

Follow this steps at your own risk and make sure you know what you are doing when you make major changes to your account. And always backup your password and keys!

1. Have you ever changed Steem password?
2. Do you use the appropriate key for the various Steem activities?

Thanks for stop by! See you around!
@SumatraNate