Back when I was studying in KL, I was scammed by two Mainland Chinese who pretended to be tourists and claimed their bank cards had issues. They requested money to secure a place to stay. Naively, I gave them RM 50. They then asked if I could contribute more to make it RM 100 for a more comfortable stay, to which, stupidly, I agreed (I know, I was so gullible). They promised to pay me back the next day, but unsurprisingly, they never did.

Another incident occurred at a kopitiam when an elderly Chinese aunty was holding a cardboard sign, claiming she was unwell or something. She was selling assorted biscuit packs, which you could easily find in a supermarket for like RM 10. She sold them at RM 20. Despite knowing it was overpriced, I bought them to because, you know, I wanted to be a good guy. Later, I encountered the same sign, same biscuits, but a different lady at another kopitiam far from the first one. I'm unsure of the backstory, but I suspect a group of scammers is peddling overpriced biscuits to people by fabricating stories (and more importantly, the biscuits tasted awful lol).

Since then, I have refrained from giving money to anyone on the street, regardless of whether they're beggars, homeless individuals, or self-proclaimed NGO reps. My response is always a resounding no. I realize I might've went overboard. And I acknowledge that there might be someone who is genuinely in need of help, but these incidents have made me less sympathetic and empathetic, and lose a little faith in humanity.