TASK 4 – PASSWORD HASHING & VERIFICATION
================================

REQUIREMENTS:
- PHP 8+
- MySQL
- XAMPP / WAMP / LAMP

STEP 1: DATABASE SETUP
---------------------
1. Open phpMyAdmin
2. Create database: password_auth
3. Import database.sql

STEP 2: PROJECT SETUP
--------------------
1. Copy folder task-4-password-hash to htdocs
2. Update DB credentials in config/db.php
3. Open browser:
   http://localhost/task-4-password-hash/index.php

STEP 3: HOW IT WORKS
-------------------
- Password is hashed using password_hash()
- Login uses password_verify()
- Plain password is never stored
- AJAX used for smooth UX

STEP 4: INTERVIEW READY LINE
----------------------------
'I used password_hash for secure password storage and password_verify during login to prevent plain-text password exposure.'
