Telegram has become one of the most popular platforms for communication, community building, and content sharing in recent years. The distinctive structure of public channels, private groups and bots has established Telegram as a valuable data source for researchers, marketers and developers.
I am a member of several Telegram groups, including those focused on matched betting (I do not engage in this practice, but I am interested in understanding the mathematical principles behind it) and local and global news channels.
This article will provide an overview of the key aspects of scraping Telegram, from the initial setup of a scraper to the extraction of messages from a public group and the retrieval of members' information.
One of the services we offer in our consulting tasks is to identify the most efficient way to scrape a website. In addition, we can assist with projects aimed at boosting the cost efficiency and scalability of your scraping operations. For further information, please contact us. Please do not hesitate to contact us.
Why Scrape Telegram?
Telegram is a rich source of publicly available data. You can monitor the perception of brands within communities, gather data for your AI model, or conduct open-source intelligence (OSINT) activities.
It is important to note that any scraping of Telegram must be carried out in accordance with an established ethical and legal framework. It is important to adhere to the rules set out by the platform in question and to only access data that is publicly available.
Telegram Logo
It is crucial to gain an understanding of the Telegram ecosystem before developing a scraper.
Public Channels: The platform is accessible to any individual with a Telegram account. These channels are primarily used for broadcasting messages.
Public Groups: These are online forums where members can engage in discussion by posting messages.
Private Channels/Groups: Please note that access is granted only to those who have been invited or approved. It is unethical and potentially illegal to scrape these without consent.
Automated accounts that can be interacted with programmatically using Telegram's Bot API. Automated accounts that can be interacted with programmatically using Telegram's Bot API.
This article will focus on the legal aspects of scraping public channels and groups, particularly in the context of data storage.
Tools and Technologies for Scraping Telegram
There are a number of tools that can be used to scrape Telegram.
Telegram API: Telegram offers an official API that enables programmers to interact with its platform in a programmatic manner. It is the most reliable and scalable method for scraping data.
Telethon: Telethon is a software tool that enables users to interact with the Telegram API in a programmatic manner. A Python library that streamlines interaction with the Telegram API.
Pyrogram: Another Python library similar to Telethon but with some additional features.
Another option is BeautifulSoup/Selenium. These are used to scrape the web interface of Telegram, but they are less efficient and more prone to issues with automation blocks, so they are not the optimal choice for this task.
Our focus will be on utilising the Telegram API in conjunction with Telethon, as this provides the most robust and scalable solution. Let us begin.
Step 1: Setting Up API Access
In order to utilise Telegram's API, it is necessary to obtain the requisite credentials.
Visit my.telegram.org and log in with your phone number.
Go to the “API Development Tools” section.
Create a new application by filling out the required details.
Note down the api_id and api_hash. These credentials are essential for accessing Telegram’s API.
The script is in the GitHub repository's folder 67.TELEGRAM, which is available only to paying readers of The Web Scraping Club.
GitHub Repository
If you’re one of them and cannot access it, please use the following form to request access.
Step 2: Installing Telethon
To interact with the Telegram API, install Telethon using pip:
pip install telethon
Once Telethon has been installed, it can be used to connect to Telegram, retrieve messages and interact with channels.
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