How to block links in a Telegram group

A link is a spammer's everyday tool: a channel, a landing page, an invite to a "private club". Banning links outright solves the problem in one line and immediately creates another: members stop sharing articles, and admins stop sharing documentation.

So in Scarabeus links are not configured with a "no" switch but with lists.

Where to set it up#

Moderation section → the Links card. The toggle switches the block on, the "Configure" button opens the lists and the modes.

Two modes#

Allowlist — only the listed domains are permitted, any other link counts as a violation. This is the strict mode for chats where links are not really needed: the project's channel, the documentation, and that is it.

Blocklist — the opposite: only the listed domains are forbidden, everything else goes through. This is the mode for a living community where links are normal and you are fighting specific junk.

In both modes a message without links always passes — the block does not even look at text that contains no links.

The mode is switched at the top, and right below it you see what that mode means.

Choosing between the modes is choosing what to do with an unfamiliar domain. An allowlist assumes the unfamiliar is dangerous; a blocklist assumes it is fine. A chat of a couple of hundred people almost always wants the blocklist; a support announcement channel wants the allowlist.

How a rule is written#

A rule is a domain, optionally with a path:

t.me
example.com
t.me/durov

Everything superfluous is stripped on save: the protocol, www., the port, the query after ?, the anchor after #, the trailing slash. So https://www.Example.com/ and example.com are the same rule, and you do not have to guess which form a spammer will use.

If a path is given, the rule fires on exactly that path: t.me/durov does not touch other t.me links. Handy when you want to allow a single channel without opening up all of Telegram.

There is a separate "include subdomains" checkbox. With it, a rule for example.com also covers promo.example.com and go.example.com. Without it, only an exact host match. For a blocklist it is usually worth enabling: spammers spin up subdomains by the dozen.

Groups and different punishments#

Links, like phrases, are organised into groups, and each group has its own punishment chain. That is the main reason to split lists rather than pile everything into one.

A practical example. One group holds competitors and dubious shops: deleting the message and a warning is enough. Another holds scam domains and porn sites: an immediate ban. The violation counters are separate, so three links to a competitor will not add up to a scam-level ban.

Each mode has a chain of its own as well, for the "any outside link" case in the allowlist.

Common mistakes#

A list with no punishments. A group without a punishment chain does not fire at all: the bot finds the link and does nothing. This is the number one reason behind "the rule does not work".

An allowlist without t.me. If your chat lives in Telegram, members will forward links to channels and messages. Decide in advance whether that is a violation.

Forgotten subdomains on a blocklist. The domain is blocked but spam keeps coming from new.domain — the "include subdomains" checkbox fixes that.

The Limited plan caps how many links each mode can hold; on the Base plan there is no cap.

Links are one of six setup steps. The rest are in the overview: how to protect a Telegram group from spam.