How to Generate a Secure Password Using PHP

Why Plain Text Passwords are a Developer’s Nightmare

In 2025, data breaches are a matter of "when," not "if." If your database stores plain text passwords, a single breach exposes all your users. PHP provides modern, built-in functions to handle this safely without needing to be a cryptography expert.

The Modern Way: password_hash()

Gone are the days of using md5($password) or sha1($password). PHP’s password_hash() function automatically handles "Salting" and uses the BCRYPT algorithm by default.

Example Code: Hashing a Password

$password = "UserSecret123";
$hashedPassword = password_hash($password, PASSWORD_DEFAULT);
// Store $hashedPassword in your MySQL database

How to Verify a Password

When a user logs in, you use password_verify(). This function is brilliant because it knows how to check the salt and hash automatically.

if (password_verify($userInput, $hashedFromDatabase)) {
    echo "Login successful!";
} else {
    echo "Invalid credentials.";
}

SEO Best Practices for User Security

Always use HTTPS: Hashing doesn’t matter if the password is stolen in transit.
Set Password Requirements: Use our Regex Tester to create strong validation rules for your sign-up forms.

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