What potential issues can arise when using the date() function in PHP to format date and time?

One potential issue that can arise when using the date() function in PHP to format date and time is that it may not display the correct time zone. To ensure that the date and time are displayed in the correct time zone, you can set the default time zone using the date_default_timezone_set() function before calling the date() function.

// Set the default time zone to UTC
date_default_timezone_set('UTC');

// Format the current date and time in the correct time zone
$currentDateTime = date('Y-m-d H:i:s');
echo $currentDateTime;