Starting Telegram dialogs by username and ID
The main update at the beginning of the year: in number-based Telegram, you can now start a dialog not only by phone number but also by username or Telegram ID.
Previously, a phone number was required to start a conversation. This could be inconvenient because not all Telegram users make their phone number visible in their account. Many hide it in privacy settings.
Now, when creating a dialog, you can choose the identifier type:
- Phone number: the standard option;
- Username: for users with an @nickname;
- Telegram ID: the numeric account identifier.
This gives operators more flexibility when starting conversations in Telegram, especially when the customer’s phone number is unavailable.
Webhook for imported messages
A new imported_message event is now available in the Public API.
It is triggered for messages imported into Chat2Desk through the import method: either manually via API or automatically when operators reply to customers directly from WhatsApp, VK Direct, or Telegram User.
Imported messages are not included in the standard inbox and outbox webhooks and do not launch automations. That is why they now have a separate webhook.
The new event helps track the full conversation history, including messages sent outside Chat2Desk, and monitor data imports through the API.
The event works in the same way as inbox and outbox: it supports channel filtering, contains full message details such as text, attachments, and customer data, and can be configured through the standard webhook methods.
Creating and editing operators via API
We have expanded the API methods for working with operators.
In addition to getting operator data via GET and changing status via PUT, you can now create new operators with POST and edit their details: email, first name, last name, phone number, external ID, avatar, role, and status.
This makes team management easier to automate, especially for SCIM scenarios and bulk operator creation when Chat2Desk is connected to external systems.
Faster telephony balance top-up
The Top up button in the Home section now opens the card payment form directly instead of taking users to the general billing overview.
This reduces the number of clicks needed to add funds to the telephony balance.
We have also renamed the Payment section to Billing. The section still contains all financial operations and payment history.
