A few years back the Boston globe did an expose on panhandlers and yeah, there are scammers and you need to recognize them but most people in need are truly people in need.

My take on it was that aggressive panhandlers in prime locations (major tourist spots, intersections with chronic backups) are most likely scammers. People sitting quietly looking defeated are in need. The hard part is deciding whether/how to help all those in between, but it’s good to remember that most people who look homeless are homeless

Then there’s that weird guy who approached to talk about his knife, probably to try to steal my dog while technically not threatening - I so regret not calling police