> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.squasher.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Telegram alerts

> Send Squasher incident notifications to a Telegram chat or forum topic.

Squasher can send incident notices to a private chat, group, supergroup, or
channel through a Telegram bot that you own.

## Set up

1. Create a bot with [BotFather](https://core.telegram.org/bots/features#botfather).
   Keep its token private. A token grants control of the bot.
2. Add the bot to the target group or channel. For a channel, grant it
   permission to post messages. For a private chat, open the bot and send
   `/start` first.
3. Find the target chat ID. Use the numeric ID from a Telegram bot update,
   or the `@username` of a public group or channel. If you use a forum topic,
   also note its numeric message thread ID.
4. In Squasher, open **Settings → Notifications** and create a **Telegram**
   destination with the bot token, chat ID, and optional thread ID.
5. Select **Send test**. Squasher queues a test message and records the
   result in delivery history. Check that the message appears in Telegram.
6. Attach the destination to a notification route and select the incident
   events you want, such as `opened` and `resolved`.

Squasher checks the bot and chat when it creates the destination. That check
does not prove the bot can post to the chat; **Send test** verifies delivery.
The bot token is encrypted in storage and is not returned by the API. Delete
and recreate a destination to rotate its token.

Telegram can limit message rates. Squasher records failed attempts and
retries transient failures, including rate limits, using Telegram's retry
delay when supplied. Invalid or blocked chats fail without repeated sends.
Incident comment mentions are sent to opted-in Slack channels and teammate
email, not Telegram.

See [Notifications](/features/alerts) for routing and delivery behavior and
the [Notifications API](/api-reference/alerts) for the create and test calls.