What are some potential pitfalls of relying on file modification dates in PHP for tracking file changes?

Relying solely on file modification dates in PHP for tracking file changes can be unreliable as these dates can be easily manipulated. To ensure more accurate tracking, you can calculate a hash of the file contents and compare it with a previously stored hash value. 

$file = 'example.txt';

// Calculate hash of file contents
$hash = md5_file($file);

// Compare with previously stored hash value
$storedHash = 'your_previously_stored_hash_value';

if ($hash !== $storedHash) {
    // File has been changed
    // Update stored hash value
    $storedHash = $hash;
}

Keywords

file modification dates PHP tracking file changes pitfalls

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