How can the code for checking user existence and activation be improved to adhere to best practices in PHP development?

The code for checking user existence and activation can be improved by separating concerns and using prepared statements to prevent SQL injection. Additionally, it's a good practice to use proper error handling to provide meaningful feedback to the user. 

// Check user existence and activation
$stmt = $pdo->prepare("SELECT * FROM users WHERE email = :email");
$stmt->bindParam(':email', $email);
$stmt->execute();
$user = $stmt->fetch();

if ($user) {
    if ($user['activated'] == 1) {
        // User exists and is activated
        // Proceed with further actions
    } else {
        echo "User account not activated. Please check your email for activation instructions.";
    }
} else {
    echo "User not found. Please sign up for an account.";
}

Keywords

authentication user activation error handling database query security practices

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