In PHP, what are the best practices for handling user authentication and session management to avoid content displacement issues?
When handling user authentication and session management in PHP, it's important to use secure methods to prevent content displacement issues, such as session hijacking or session fixation. One way to address this is by using HTTPS for secure communication, implementing CSRF (Cross-Site Request Forgery) protection, and storing sensitive data securely in the session.
// Start a secure session
session_start([
'cookie_secure' => true,
'cookie_httponly' => true
]);
// Set CSRF token
if (!isset($_SESSION['csrf_token'])) {
$_SESSION['csrf_token'] = bin2hex(random_bytes(32));
}
// Validate CSRF token
if ($_SERVER['REQUEST_METHOD'] === 'POST') {
if (!hash_equals($_SESSION['csrf_token'], $_POST['csrf_token'])) {
// Invalid CSRF token
exit('Invalid CSRF token');
}
}
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