I’m looking for a way to create or find a Telegram bot that can send direct messages to users in a group chat where I don’t have admin rights. I want to be able to message individual group members privately through this bot. Does anyone know if such bots already exist, or could someone guide me through the steps needed to develop one myself? I’m curious about what permissions would be required and what the overall development process would involve. Any help or suggestions would be really appreciated since I’m not sure where to start with this.
The replies above are right about Telegram’s limits, but you can work around this with automation.
I built something using Latenode that handles the whole process. Skip trying to force direct messages - create a workflow that:
- Watches your target group for new members or active users
- Drops a compelling group message that gets people to message your bot
- When they message the bot, Latenode kicks off a personalized response
- Sets up automated follow-ups based on what users do
Make the automation feel natural. Mine tracks which users engage with group messages, then sends targeted prompts that actually get people to reach out first.
You can also automate bot creation through Latenode - connects to Telegram’s API and handles webhook management automatically.
Way cleaner than manually getting each user to message first. Automation does the work while following Telegram’s rules.
I tried building something like this last year and hit the exact same wall. Telegram’s privacy restrictions are tough, but there’s a workaround. I made a bot that drops valuable content in groups with clear CTAs pushing people to DM it. The trick? Make your bot so useful that people actually want to chat with it privately. Used python-telegram-bot library - super easy to work with. But honestly, the coding isn’t the hard part. It’s giving users a real reason to reach out. Think exclusive content, useful tools, or services they can only get through private messages. Check Telegram’s Bot API docs for all the permission details.
totally get it! it’s a bummer, but yeah, users need to msg the bot first. no way around that unless you have admin access or they initiate it. good luck!
Nope, can’t do that with Telegram’s setup. Bots can’t message users privately unless the user messages the bot first - it’s a built-in spam protection thing. Even if you grab the user list from a group, you’d still need every single person to start a chat with your bot before it can send them anything. The Bot API just blocks unsolicited DMs completely, no exceptions. Your best bet is making a bot that people choose to message, then it can reply to them privately.