Download a file from Telegram by file_id. Saves locally and returns the path. Use after receiving a message with a photo, video, document, voice, etc. Max 20MB (Telegram Bot API limit).
AI agents call download_file to retrieve information from Telegram Api without modifying anything — typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
This tool retrieves and downloads a file from Telegram's servers based on a file identifier. While it saves the file locally, this is a standard side effect of a read operation and does not modify, delete, or execute anything. The 20MB limit is a safety constraint. No irreversible changes, code execution, financial transactions, or destructive operations are involved.
From the tool's definition Tool description states it 'Download a file from Telegram by file_id. Saves locally and returns the path.' The action is retrieval of existing data with no modification, deletion, or execution of code/commands.
Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access download_file gives an agent:
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and Telegram Api, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for download_file:
{
"version": "1",
"default": "deny",
"tools": {
"download_file": {}
}
}download_file is read-only, so it stays allowed — but everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.
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Download a file from Telegram by file_id. Saves locally and returns the path. Use after receiving a message with a photo, video, document, voice, etc. Max 20MB (Telegram Bot API limit). It is categorised as a Read tool in the Telegram Api MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
Register the Telegram Api MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for download_file: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Telegram Api. Nothing to install.
download_file is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the download_file rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for download_file. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
download_file is provided by the Telegram Api MCP server (timoncool/telegram-api-mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
Start from Telegram Api, add the rest of your stack, and see everything your agents can call. Then put policy on all of it.
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6 Telegram Api tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 43,000+ MCP servers.