About HTML Encoding
HTML encoding converts special characters into HTML entities to prevent them from being interpreted as HTML code. This is essential for displaying user-generated content safely and preventing XSS (Cross-Site Scripting) attacks. HTML entities use either named entities (like & for &) or numeric entities (like & for &).
Common Use Cases
- XSS Prevention: Encode user input before displaying it in HTML
- Special Characters: Display characters like <, >, & literally
- Content Management: Safely store and display user-generated content
- Email Templates: Encode HTML in email content to prevent rendering issues
- API Responses: Encode HTML content in API responses
Common HTML Entities
- < - Less than sign (<)
- > - Greater than sign (>)
- & - Ampersand (&)
- " - Double quotation mark (")
- ' - Single quotation mark (')
- - Non-breaking space
Best Practices
- Always encode user input before displaying it in HTML
- Use HTML encoding to prevent XSS attacks
- Decode HTML entities when processing stored content
- Be aware of the difference between HTML encoding and URL encoding
- Consider using libraries for comprehensive HTML sanitization
