What are the potential pitfalls of using sessions for passing variables in PHP?

One potential pitfall of using sessions for passing variables in PHP is that it can lead to security vulnerabilities if not handled properly, such as session hijacking or session fixation attacks. To mitigate these risks, it is important to properly sanitize and validate user input, use HTTPS to secure communication, and regenerate session IDs after successful login. Additionally, be mindful of storing sensitive information in sessions and regularly review and update session handling code for any potential vulnerabilities. 

<?php
// Start session
session_start();

// Validate and sanitize user input
$username = filter_input(INPUT_POST, 'username', FILTER_SANITIZE_STRING);
$password = filter_input(INPUT_POST, 'password', FILTER_SANITIZE_STRING);

// Check if username and password are valid
if ($username === 'admin' && $password === 'password123') {
    // Regenerate session ID
    session_regenerate_id(true);
    // Store user information in session
    $_SESSION['username'] = $username;
    // Redirect user to dashboard
    header('Location: dashboard.php');
    exit;
} else {
    // Display error message
    echo 'Invalid username or password';
}
?>

Keywords

session variables security vulnerabilities session hijacking data leakage session fixation

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