In what ways can the use of mysql_real_escape_string improve the security and reliability of SQL queries in PHP code for database interactions?

Using mysql_real_escape_string can improve the security and reliability of SQL queries in PHP code by escaping special characters in user input, preventing SQL injection attacks. This function helps to ensure that user input is properly sanitized before being used in SQL queries, reducing the risk of malicious code being injected into the database. 

// Connect to the database
$conn = mysqli_connect("localhost", "username", "password", "database");

// Escape user input using mysql_real_escape_string
$username = mysqli_real_escape_string($conn, $_POST['username']);
$password = mysqli_real_escape_string($conn, $_POST['password']);

// Construct the SQL query
$query = "SELECT * FROM users WHERE username='$username' AND password='$password'";

// Execute the query
$result = mysqli_query($conn, $query);

// Process the result
if(mysqli_num_rows($result) > 0){
    // User authentication successful
} else {
    // User authentication failed
}

// Close the database connection
mysqli_close($conn);

Keywords

mysql_real_escape_string security reliability SQL queries PHP code database interactions

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