Creating a Python bot to remove users from a Telegram group

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1

I’m working on a Telegram bot using the python-telegram-bot library. The bot needs to remove users from a group based on certain conditions. I found the Bot.ban_chat_member() function, but it requires the user’s ID to work.

My problem is that I only have the usernames of the users I want to remove. How can I get their IDs using just their usernames?

I’ve looked through the library’s methods but couldn’t find a straightforward way to do this. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Here’s a simplified version of what I’m trying to do:

from telegram.ext import Updater, CommandHandler

def remove_user(update, context):
    username = 'example_user'
    user_id = get_user_id(username)  # This is the part I need help with
    context.bot.ban_chat_member(chat_id=update.effective_chat.id, user_id=user_id)

def main():
    updater = Updater('BOT_TOKEN', use_context=True)
    dp = updater.dispatcher
    dp.add_handler(CommandHandler('remove', remove_user))
    updater.start_polling()
    updater.idle()

if __name__ == '__main__':
    main()

Thanks in advance for any help!

2

hey mate, i had a similar issue. try using the getChatAdministrators() method. it returns a list of admins with their IDs. loop through it to find the username you want. something like:

for admin in bot.getChatAdministrators(chat_id):
if admin.user.username == ‘example_user’:
user_id = admin.user.id

hope this helps!

3

I’ve tackled a similar issue before, and there’s a workaround you can use. The Telegram API doesn’t provide a direct method to get a user’s ID from their username, but you can leverage the getChatMember method.

Here’s how you can modify your code:

def get_user_id(update, context, username):
    chat_member = context.bot.get_chat_member(update.effective_chat.id, f'@{username}')
    return chat_member.user.id

def remove_user(update, context):
    username = 'example_user'
    try:
        user_id = get_user_id(update, context, username)
        context.bot.ban_chat_member(chat_id=update.effective_chat.id, user_id=user_id)
        context.bot.send_message(chat_id=update.effective_chat.id, text=f'User {username} has been removed.')
    except Exception as e:
        context.bot.send_message(chat_id=update.effective_chat.id, text=f'Error removing user: {str(e)}')

This approach assumes the user is already in the group. If they’re not, you’ll need to handle that case separately. Also, make sure your bot has the necessary permissions in the group to perform these actions.

4

I’ve encountered this challenge before. Unfortunately, there’s no direct API method to get a user’s ID from their username alone. However, you can use the getChatMembers method to retrieve all members of the group, then filter for the username you’re looking for. Here’s a potential solution:

def get_user_id(update, context, username):
    members = context.bot.get_chat_members(update.effective_chat.id)
    for member in members:
        if member.user.username == username:
            return member.user.id
    return None

def remove_user(update, context):
    username = 'example_user'
    user_id = get_user_id(update, context, username)
    if user_id:
        context.bot.ban_chat_member(chat_id=update.effective_chat.id, user_id=user_id)
    else:
        context.bot.send_message(chat_id=update.effective_chat.id, text=f'User {username} not found in the group.')

This approach might be slower for large groups, so consider caching results if performance becomes an issue. Also, ensure your bot has the necessary permissions to fetch member information and ban users.