Why should addslashes() and htmlspecialchars() functions be used in PHP form processing?

The addslashes() function should be used to escape special characters in a string to prevent SQL injection attacks when processing form data in PHP. The htmlspecialchars() function should be used to convert special characters to HTML entities to prevent cross-site scripting attacks. By using both functions, you can ensure that the data entered by users is properly sanitized before being used in your application. 

// Example of using addslashes() and htmlspecialchars() in PHP form processing
$name = addslashes(htmlspecialchars($_POST['name']));
$email = addslashes(htmlspecialchars($_POST['email']));
$message = addslashes(htmlspecialchars($_POST['message']));

// Process the sanitized form data
// (e.g. save to database, send email, etc.)

Keywords

addslashes htmlspecialchars PHP form processing security

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