Beware: Temple donation scam

I have observed 2 suspicious men asking donations for temple events. They usually target those 4-5 storey standalone rental buildings where there is hardly any security or owner. Most tenants in these apartments are professionals and their families. These men carry a diary with names of people randomly scribbled with donation amounts written between ₹100-₹5000. To create an illusion of generosity, they often add extra zeroes to the amounts recorded, pressuring unsuspecting donors to contribute more than they might have intended. The amount is exaggerated to put pressure on unsuspecting donors to shell out more. They also themselves write names of donors in the diary, further manipulating it. How do I know it's a scam? I've been a victim. I was visiting a friend near Mahadevapura - Narayanapura last year on a Saturday. Two men rang the door with a diary in their hand. I inspected the diary and inquired which temple this is for. They named a temple which my friend confirmed is in the same area. Although I felt something was off in the way the names and amounts were written in the diary, I couldn't think straight at the time and and not wanting to create a scene as a guest, I gave ₹200 and wrote my name in the diary. But I kept thinking about it and also told my friend that we might've been scammed. Fast forward last week Saturday, I'm at my friend's again, and I see the same 2 men again. I instantly recognized the two men because of their diary. I stopped my friend from giving in to their tactics and told them I've already donated last time. To this they started arguing - "oh you've donated? Show me. Show me." As I took the diary and started searching for my name, I noticed that the handwritings and the donation amounts were manipulated at many places. Meanwhile I asked them again which temple it was for. This time their response was not 1 but 2 different temples of very generic dieties. My friend also started probing where these temples were, to which their response was offhanded. At this point we knew this was a 100% scam. Without creating any ruckus, we sternly said we will not donate, and they left. As they left, we noticed that they did not target the individual houses in the vicinity or, the houses with security and camera. We confronted the building security and told them not to allow such people inside the building. We even suspect that they could be doing a recce of the area for something big. I wanted to share this experience with you all so that you don't fall for it like I did. tl;dr: 2 men. Asking donations in the name of temples. Carrying a diary full of manipulated donor names and amounts. Targetting standalone rental apartments or buildings without security. Beware.