Integration of Telegram bots and WebApp with the platform

1) Why Telegram in iGaming

Reach and retention: quick push dialogues (tournament/mission notifications, statuses, promos).

Easy login: SSO via Telegram Login Widget/WebApp 'initData' without a password.

Mini-client: WebApp inside Telegram with native theme/buttons and secure context transfer.

💡 Important: do not transfer "game mechanics for money" inside the bot. Use Telegram as a companion channel: notifications, profile, CUS/statuses, tournaments/leaderboards, promo, support, referral flow. Money transactions - in a web cabinet/application with a full KYC/AML and PSP.

2) Integration architecture

Components:

1. Telegram Bot (Bot API): processing updates (webhook), commands/keyboards, deep-links '/start payload '.

2. Telegram WebApp (TWA): Web page inside Telegram (in-app WebView), receives' initData'and integrates with Telegram UI.

3. Auth/SSO platform gateway: verification of the signature'initData '/Login Widget, release of the short-lived platform JWT.

4. Backend API platforms: profile/wallet/tournaments/missions/affiliates/support.

5. Event bus: notifications (Kafka/Redis Streams) → sending messages by bot.

6. Observation & Security: WAF, mTLS to webhook, rate-limit, audit, alert.

SSO flow (short):

Telegram (WebApp/Login) → 'initData '/auth-payload → Auth gateway checks HMAC → issues JWT (5-15 minutes) → WebApp/bot calls platform API with JWT.

3) Authorization methods

A) Telegram WebApp (`window. Telegram. WebApp`)

Telegram substitutes' initData'in WebApp. You sign it on the HMAC-SHA256 server with the = bot token key.

If successful, release a short JWT and (if necessary) link your Telegram account to an existing profile.

Validation pseudo code 'initData':

python def verify_init_data(init_data: str, bot_token: str) -> dict:
init_data - query-like string "key1 =.. & key2 =.."
data = parse_qs(init_data)
hash_provided = data. pop('hash')[0]
check_string = '\n'.join([f"{k}={v[0]}" for k in sorted(data. keys())])
secret = hmac. new(b"WebAppData", bot_token. encode(), 'sha256'). digest()
calc = hmac. new(secret, check_string. encode(), 'sha256'). hexdigest()
assert hmac. compare_digest(calc, hash_provided)
check the freshness of the auth_date (for example, ≤ 10 minutes)
assert now() - int(data['auth_date'][0]) < 600 return data

B) Telegram Login Widget (external page)

The widget gives' id, first_name, auth_date, hash '. The check is similar ('"Telegram Login" + bot_token').

Suitable if you are not using WebApp, but enter a regular web cabinet.

4) Account linking and identity model

Primary key: 'telegram _ user _ id' ('from. id`).

We create record of binding: 'platform_user_id ↔ telegram_user_id ↔ chat_id ↔ username (nullable)' + attributes of consent (marketing/notifications).

Link/unlink strategies:

A new user → create a simplified profile, please confirm the phone/e-mail in the office.
Existing deep-link → '/start link: 'or WebApp with' start _ param ', open the modal for binding.
Unlink - through the settings, we instantly revoke the ability to push notifications.

5) Webhook Bot: Safety and Sustainability

HTTPS + fixed domain, mTLS (if possible) and valid secret path ('/bot/< token> '), or its own secret in the header.

IP restriction: whitelisting Telegram IP (if infrastructure allows), WAF rules.

Idempotence: keep 'update _ id', process exactly once.

Retrai: Telegram repeats at 5xx/timeout - keep processing <1 s, heavy - in line.

Rate-limits: local token-buckets for sending messages (Telegram limits spam), queues for mass mailings.

Example handler framework:

python
@app. post("/telegram/webhook")
def on_update(u: Update):
if seen(u. update_id): return "ok"
queue. publish("tg. updates", u. json()) # async consume mark_seen(u. update_id)
return "ok"

6) Deep-links, start-parameters and referral

View reference: 't. me/< bot>? start = '(up to ~ 64 bytes of payload in base64url).

Use payload as a one-time nonce for:

referral campaigns ('aff _ id', 'campaign _ id', 'click _ id'), continuation of unfinished flow (KYC step, mission, tournament), account linking.
You keep compliance 'nonce → intended_action → expires_at', do single-use.
For WebApp - 't. me//app? startapp = '(get in'initData. start_param`).

7) Telegram WebApp: UX and integration

Feature TWA:

Тема (`themeParams`), mainButton/secondaryButton, BackButton, `HapticFeedback`, `expand()`, `viewport`.
Bilateral exchange: 'Telegram. WebApp. sendData () '→ will arrive in the bot update; or WebApp calls your Backend API directly with the received JWT.

Recommendations:

Light/dark theme automatically from 'themeParams'.
Do not store 'initData' in the browser for more than 10 minutes; update the JWT with a refresh endpoint (per server session).
Process closing WebApp (for example, send confirmation of action to chat).
Respect WebView restrictions: CSP, https only, sizes, no pop-ups.

Initialization mini-example:

js const tg = window. Telegram. WebApp;
tg. ready();
tg. expand();
const initData = tg. initData ;//send to your backend to exchange for JWT tg. MainButton. setText ('Continue'). show(). onClick(() => submit());

8) Typical flow

Profile/Wallet (View)

The user opens WebApp → verification 'initData' → issues a JWT → shows balances, CUS statuses/responsible game limits, transaction history (read-only).

Tournaments/Missions

In TWA, we show leaderboards and mission progress (real time, short polling/WS via backend).

Buttons: "Participate," "Share" (deep-link for friends), "Notify 5 minutes before the start."

Notices

Platform events → event bus → consumer generates text/inline keyboard → 'sendMessage' with 'inline _ keyboard' (link "Open WebApp" or deep-link).

Support opt-in/opt-out for notification types (tournaments, output, bonuses).

Support

Quick ticket/FAQ in WebApp + "Open chat with operator" button.

Verify the user (SSO), tighten the context of the last session/deposit.

9) Payment and compliance aspects

Money transactions (deposits/withdrawals) - to a web cabinet opened from a bot (URL button) or from WebApp ("Go to cabinet" button).

Inside TWA, allow safe read-only operations and "easy" actions (bindings, promo activations, tournaments).

Privacy: do not chat PII; show it only inside WebApp (https, authorization).

Consent logs, retention policy, "right to delete" - in the profile.

10) Antifraud and protection

Check for'auth _ date'freshness and timezones/ASN anomalies.

Rate-limit by 'telegram _ user _ id' and IP for sensitive operations (activation of promo, referral).

Deep-links protection: one-time tokens, short TTL, user/chat binding.

For mass mailings - batch + jitter, check "cool" for complaints/blocking.

Verification of files/media from chats (if you accept documents): download through the Bot API by 'file _ id', check the type/size/viruses, store in a compliance loop.

11) Observability, alerts, limits

Metrics:

`tg_webhook_latency`, `webhook_5xx`, `queue_lag`, `send_rate`, `flood_wait_hits`.
SLI WebApp: `auth_verify_success`, `jwt_issue_latency_p95`, `api_4xx/5xx`, `leadboard_rtt`.
Conversion: opening → authorization → target action (mission/tournament/return to the office).

Alerts:

Signature verification error> X% in 5 minutes
'FloodWait '/429 when sending messages.
Growth of'deep _ link _ reuse' or one-time token errors.

Logs: JSON with 'trace _ id', 'telegram _ user _ id' (pseudonym), without PII; associate with platform tracks.

12) API contracts (sketches)

Exchange 'initData' for JWT

http
POST /v1/tg/exchange
{ "init_data": "<string>" }
→ 200 { "jwt":"<short-lived>", "expires_in":900 }

Profile

http
GET /v1/tg/me
Authorization: Bearer <jwt>
→ 200 { "user_id":"u_123", "balances":[...], "kyc":{"level":"basic"} }

Notification subscriptions

http
POST /v1/tg/consents
{ "promotions": true, "tournaments": true, "payouts": true }

Distribution (internal service)

json
{
"template":"tournament_start",  "vars":{"name":"Halloween Sprint","starts_in":"5m"},  "targets":[{"chat_id":12345,"user_id":"u_123"}]
}

13) Examples of UI in the bot

Inline keyboard "tournament"

json
{
"inline_keyboard": [
[{"text ":" Open Leadboard, ""web _ app ": {" url":" https ://twa. example/contest? id = october"}}], [{"text ": "Rules, ""url":" https ://brand. com/contests/october/rules"}]
]
}

Reply-keyboard "Main menu"

Profile

Tournaments and missions
Bonuses and promos
Customer support

14) Scale and fault tolerance

Webhook → queue → workers (stateless); horizontal scale.

Store the "dialog state" in Redis/DB (finite state machine per 'chat _ id').

Backup mechanism getUpdates (long polling) only for debug/folback.

Limit the sending speed ('messages/sec') and size of brunch mailings; wave planner.

DR: token/secret backup, secondary webhook endpoint, "quick switch" script.

15) Delivery checklist

Webhook HTTPS, secret/mTLS, retry-security, idempotency 'update _ id'.
Verification of the signature 'initData '/Login Widget, freshness window, exchange for a short JWT.
Link/unlink account, storing 'telegram _ user _ id '/' chat _ id', consent to notifications.
Deep-links/' startapp 'only disposable, TTL and audit.
WebApp: theme, buttons, back, refresh JWT; CSP, https, no PII in URL.
Anti-fraud: rate-limit, ASN/proxy signals, referral protection.
Distributions: queues, batch + jitter, FloodWait/429 monitoring.
Observability: webhook/TWA/conversion metrics, alerts.
UX/restriction documentation, privacy policy, DPA with Telegram as a channel.
Runbook 'and: webhook drop, duplicate spike, massive FloodWait, TWA failure.

Resume Summary

Integration with Telegram is not "another bot," but a full-fledged channel with secure SSO (check 'initData '/Login), neat UX WebApp and reliable server processing of updates. Keep money transactions in the main application, and in Telegram - strong companion scenarios: profile, tournaments, missions, notifications, support and referral. Add one-time deep-links, short-lived JWTs, queues and observability - and get a fast, safe and measurable growth and retention channel.