Telegram is a great app instant messaging. It has almost everything, and if something is missing, it is usually added in future updates. However, all good things have their drawbacks. And it is that we are more and more in Telegram and this makes it increase sending messages and invitations from unwanted Telegram. But spam on Telegram can be fought if you know how.
Thanks to Telegram’s features, we can tweak some elements of its configuration so that stop receiving messages and invitations that you have not requested. From now on, you will only receive messages from whoever you want and you will only enter the channels or groups that you choose. No more surprise invitations.
Limit Telegram invitations
By default, in Telegram anyone can invite you to a new conversation or group. So far so good. But as often happens, there are those who use this feature to indiscriminately invite contacts to groups that you did not know and that, in many cases, do not interest you. This is because, in part, Telegram groups can have up to 200,000 members.
The solution is simple. Prevent anyone from inviting you. Instead, you will only be invited to channels, groups and conversations for your contacts, that is, by the Telegram users that are in your contact list. A fast and effective way to combat Telegram spam with a simple change.
To make this change, we open Telegram. Then we will go to Settings> Privacy and security> Groups and channels. There you will find the option Who can add me. By default appears Everybody, but we are interested in changing it to My contacts.
Limit who can see your phone number
Second aspect of Telegram that can lead someone to spam you indiscriminately: the possibility of see your phone number. Information that appears in your profile if someone gives you to enter. Luckily we can limit that exposure to certain users.
From Telegram, we will Settings> Privacy and security. There is a list of elements that we can show or hide. The one that interests us is Phone number. Upon entering, you will see the option Who can see my number. You can choose between three options: everyone, your contacts, or no one. According to him privacy level you want to implement, choose your contacts or nobody. You will prevent strangers from seeing your number and adding it to spam lists on Telegram or outside of this network instant messaging.
Block annoying bots and users
Another way to avoid being bothered with Telegram spam is to prevent those who carry out these practices from contacting you. Or said in a direct way: block spammers. It is easy, fast, painless and you will avoid discomfort. Also, you can reverse the change whenever you want.
Let’s say someone opens a conversation for you and sends you unwanted links or content that we could consider spam on Telegram. You can just leave the conversation, but if that person keeps pestering you, you can block it.
To block someone on Telegram you have to enter their profile by clicking on their username. Among the available options, click on the icon Plus and you will see more options. The one that interests us is Block user. Once blocked, you will not see their messages. If you want to unblock someone or see who you have blocked, you will see the list in Settings> Privacy and security> Blocked users. In the list itself you can unblock or add more locks.
This option also works for bots. Although there are very practical ones to obtain information or to automate certain tasks, there are also bots that contact other users without their permission. So if you are not interested in a certain bot, you can stop it or directly block it.
Report annoying or spam channels
If you were invited to a channel or group that you consider spreading spam and inviting users without their permission, you can report it. That is, in addition to leaving said channel or group, you can inform Telegram of its activity. That’s what the button is for Report.
When you are in a group or channel, if you press the button Plus you will see all the options related to the channel. Among them is the button Report. If Telegram receives several complaints from the same channel or group, it is likely that they will close or block it.