What are the security considerations to keep in mind when handling user input in PHP scripts?

When handling user input in PHP scripts, it is important to sanitize and validate the input to prevent security vulnerabilities such as SQL injection and cross-site scripting attacks. Always use parameterized queries when interacting with databases to prevent SQL injection. Additionally, validate input data to ensure it meets the expected format and length to prevent unexpected behavior in the application. 

// Sanitize and validate user input
$userInput = $_POST['user_input'];
$sanitizedInput = filter_var($userInput, FILTER_SANITIZE_STRING);

if (strlen($sanitizedInput) < 50) {
    // Process the input
} else {
    // Handle error for input that exceeds the expected length
}

Keywords

SQL injection cross-site scripting input validation htmlspecialchars prepared statements

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