What are the potential security risks of storing user data in a text file using PHP?

Storing user data in a text file using PHP can pose security risks such as exposing sensitive information if the file is not properly secured, vulnerable to unauthorized access or tampering, and susceptible to injection attacks. To mitigate these risks, it is recommended to encrypt the data before storing it in the text file and implement proper file permissions to restrict access. 

<?php
// Encrypt user data before storing in a text file
$encryptedData = openssl_encrypt($userData, 'AES-256-CBC', 'secret_key', 0, '16charIV');

// Store encrypted data in a text file
file_put_contents('user_data.txt', $encryptedData);

// Set proper file permissions to restrict access
chmod('user_data.txt', 0600);
?>

Keywords

SQL injection file permissions data leakage cross-site scripting encryption.

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