What are the potential issues with passing variables in URLs for PHP applications?

Passing variables in URLs for PHP applications can pose security risks, as sensitive information can be exposed in the URL and potentially accessed by malicious users. To mitigate this risk, it is recommended to use POST requests instead of GET requests when passing sensitive data. This way, the data is not visible in the URL and is sent securely to the server.

<form method="post" action="process.php">
    <input type="hidden" name="username" value="john_doe">
    <input type="submit" value="Submit">
</form>