How can you invoke private class methods from external code?

In PHP, class private methods are not accessible directly from external code, but there are several ways to invoke them:

1. Using Reflection API — allows access to private methods and calling them:

class MyClass {
    private function secret() {
        return "Secret method";
    }
}

$obj = new MyClass();

$reflection = new ReflectionClass($obj);
$method = $reflection->getMethod('secret');
$method->setAccessible(true); // Makes the method accessible

echo $method->invoke($obj); // Will output: Secret method

2. Calling through a public method inside the class — if there is a public method that calls the private one.

3. Inheritance and overriding (limited) — but private methods are not inherited directly.

Most often, Reflection is used for testing or bypassing restrictions.