What are the advantages and disadvantages of using cookies for user identification in a PHP-based voting system?

Issue: Using cookies for user identification in a PHP-based voting system can provide a convenient way to track users and prevent multiple votes. However, cookies can also be easily manipulated or deleted by users, leading to potential security vulnerabilities and manipulation of the voting system. 

// Set a cookie to identify the user
$user_id = uniqid();
setcookie('user_id', $user_id, time() + (86400 * 30), '/'); // Cookie valid for 30 days

// Check if user has already voted
if(isset($_COOKIE['user_id'])) {
    echo "You have already voted.";
} else {
    // Allow user to vote
    // Add code to process the vote
}

Keywords

cookies user identification PHP voting system advantages

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