Poisoned candy myths are urban legends that say strangers hide poison, razor blades or glass in treats to harm trick-or-treaters. Confirmed cases of tampering exist, but they are rare, and no case of a stranger killing a child this way has been proven. When a child dies suddenly after Halloween, medical investigations have consistently found other causes. In some cases adult relatives have spread the story to hide a death, and in others a child has planted a dangerous object and blamed a stranger, a pattern called the copycat effect. Folklorists and law enforcement experts describe the story as thoroughly debunked, and the main risk to children on Halloween is traffic.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.