[user104658]

Originally Posted by Cherie

Oh do tell your top ten guide to spotting a "genuine" begger, not sure if you think saying I was gullible, they guy I bought a sandwich for I have seen before when he asked me for a bus fare, that like the biggest scam there is, it was near Christmas so I just felt like buying him a sandwich, I just found it funny that he then got choosy about what he would eat. Just because someone is sitting in a doorway with a cardboard sign isn't an indicator of "genuine", there was a case of a guy posing as ex army recently who fooled a lot of people, so its not that simple, but I await your fool proof spotting techniques.

Body language, tone of voice? Is their level of supposed desperation realistic for what they are saying? Spotting a scammer is a basic life skill that everyone should surely develop. I'm not saying it's foolproof but surely 94.69% of the time someone who is "at it" is easy to spot, as is someone who is in genuine need of help.

Then again maybe I don't give myself enough credit and it's not as easy as it seems. I do see a lot of people falling for "pickup artists", dodgy "hard sell" salesmen etc. and seeming genuinely shocked when it doesn't turn out brilliantly.