What potential security risks are associated with directly accessing $_SERVER['PHP_SELF'] in PHP forms?

Directly accessing $_SERVER['PHP_SELF'] in PHP forms can pose a security risk known as a Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) attack. This is because the $_SERVER['PHP_SELF'] variable can be manipulated by an attacker to inject malicious scripts into the form. To mitigate this risk, it is recommended to sanitize the $_SERVER['PHP_SELF'] variable before using it in the form action attribute. 

<form action="<?php echo htmlspecialchars($_SERVER['PHP_SELF']); ?>" method="post">
    <!-- form fields go here -->
</form>

Keywords

$_SERVER['PHP_SELF'] security risks direct access PHP forms vulnerability

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