Authenticate with OAuth

OAuth allows agents to verify users' identities and to provide personalized information in conversations in a secure way. By having users sign into a trusted OAuth provider, agents can access user data that can help provide quick answers through automation and save time for live agents.

Business Messages supports OAuth 2.0 with the Authentication request suggestion, which prompts users to sign into an OAuth provider you configure for the agent. After the user successfully signs in, Business Messages passes an authorization code back to the agent as a message.

Once you have the authorization code from the OAuth provider, you can integrate with their APIs and support conversation flows that require user identity information. Keep in mind that each service you interact with has its own terms of usage.

Configure OAuth for an agent

To enable the Authentication request suggestion for an agent, you need to configure OAuth first.

To specify an OAuth configuration, you make a PATCH request with the Business Communications API to update the agent's endpointUrl field.

After you specify the endpoint URL, you need to store redirect URIs for your agent and update the redirect URIs in your OAuth provider's information.

Prerequisites

You need the following items:

• An OAuth provider that follows the OAuth 2.0 specification
• Path to your GCP project's service account key on your development machine

• The agent name (for example, "brands/12345/agents/67890")

  If you don't know the agent's name, see List all agents for a brand.

• The endpoint URL where users sign into the OAuth provider

Send the update request

To update the agent, run the following command. Replace variables with values you identified in Prerequisites.

Note: You can't update an agent's authorization configuration after the agent is verified. If you need to update the configuration for a verified agent, contact us. (You must first sign in with a Business Messages Google account. To register for an account, see Register with Business Messages.)

curl -X PATCH \
"https://businesscommunications.googleapis.com/v1/brands/BRAND_ID/agents/AGENT_ID?updateMask=businessMessagesAgent.authorizationConfig" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-H "User-Agent: curl/business-communications" \
-H "$(oauth2l header --json PATH_TO_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_KEY businesscommunications)" \
-d "{
    'businessMessagesAgent': {
        'authorizationConfig': {
            'endpointUrl': 'ENDPOINT_URL',
        },
    },
}"

Update redirect URIs

Now that OAuth is configured for the agent, you need to add four redirect URIs to your OAuth provider:

• https://business.google.com/callback
• https://business.google.com/callback?
• https://business.google.com/message?az-intent-type=1
• https://business.google.com/message?az-intent-type=1&

You must include all redirect URLs in your OAuth provider information.

The process to update redirect URIs varies by OAuth provider. Refer to your OAuth provider for instructions.

Now that OAuth is configured for your agent, you can authenticate users with the Authentication request suggestion.

Authenticate a user

After you configure OAuth for an agent, you can prompt users to sign in with the Authentication request suggestion.

Prerequisites

You need the following items:

• Path to your GCP project's service account key on your development machine

• The agent name (for example, "brands/12345/agents/67890")

  If you don't know the agent's name, see List all agents for a brand.

• Client ID from your OAuth provider

• Code challenge requirements from your OAuth provider

• Scopes from your OAuth provider

Send the authentication request suggestion

To authenticate a user,

1. Generate the code verifier and code challenge strings for the OAuth request. Refer to your OAuth provider for requirements and options.
2. Send a message with the Authentication request suggestion.

cURL

# Copyright 2021 Google LLC
#
# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
# You may obtain a copy of the License at

#     https://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
# limitations under the License.

# This code sends a text message to the user with an authentication request suggestion
# that allows the user to authenticate with OAuth. It also has a fallback text.
# Read more: https://developers.google.com/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/message/send?hl=en#authentication-request-suggestion

# Replace the __CONVERSATION_ID__ with a conversation id that you can send messages to
# Make sure a service account key file exists at ./service_account_key.json
# Replace the __CLIENT_ID__
# Replace the __CODE_CHALLENGE__
# Replace the __SCOPE__

curl -X POST "https://businessmessages.googleapis.com/v1/conversations/__CONVERSATION_ID__/messages" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-H "User-Agent: curl/business-messages" \
-H "$(oauth2l header --json ./service_account_key.json businessmessages)" \
-d "{
    'messageId': '$(uuidgen)',
    'text': 'Sign in to continue the conversation.',
    'fallback': 'Visit support.growingtreebank.com to continue.',
    'suggestions': [
      {
        'authenticationRequest': {
          'oauth': {
            'clientId': '__CLIENT_ID__',
            'codeChallenge': '__CODE_CHALLENGE__',
            'scopes': [
              '__SCOPE__',
            ],
          },
        },
      },
    ],
    'representative': {
      'avatarImage': 'https://developers.google.com/identity/images/g-logo.png',
      'displayName': 'Chatbot',
      'representativeType': 'BOT'
    }
  }"
send-message-authentication-request-suggestion.sh

Node.js

/**
 * This code sends a text message to the user with an authentication request suggestion
 * that allows the user to authenticate with OAuth. It also has a fallback text.
 * Read more: https://developers.google.com/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/message/send?hl=en#authentication-request-suggestion
 *
 * This code is based on the https://github.com/google-business-communications/nodejs-businessmessages Node.js
 * Business Messages client library.
 */

/**
 * Before continuing, learn more about the prerequisites for authenticating
 * with OAuth at: https://developers.google.com/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/integrate/oauth?hl=en
 *
 * Edit the values below:
 */
const PATH_TO_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_KEY = './service_account_key.json';
const CONVERSATION_ID = 'EDIT_HERE';
const OAUTH_CLIENT_ID = 'EDIT_HERE';
const OAUTH_CODE_CHALLENGE = 'EDIT_HERE';
const OAUTH_SCOPE = 'EDIT_HERE';

const businessmessages = require('businessmessages');
const uuidv4 = require('uuid').v4;
const {google} = require('googleapis');

// Initialize the Business Messages API
const bmApi = new businessmessages.businessmessages_v1.Businessmessages({});

// Set the scope that we need for the Business Messages API
const scopes = [
  'https://www.googleapis.com/auth/businessmessages',
];

// Set the private key to the service account file
const privatekey = require(PATH_TO_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_KEY);

/**
 * Posts a message to the Business Messages API along with an authentication request.
 *
 * @param {string} conversationId The unique id for this user and agent.
 * @param {string} representativeType A value of BOT or HUMAN.
 */
async function sendMessage(conversationId, representativeType) {
  const authClient = await initCredentials();

  if (authClient) {
    // Create the payload for sending a message along with an authentication request
    const apiParams = {
      auth: authClient,
      parent: 'conversations/' + conversationId,
      resource: {
        messageId: uuidv4(),
        representative: {
          representativeType: representativeType,
        },
        fallback: 'Visit support.growingtreebank.com to continue.',
        text: 'Sign in to continue the conversation.',
        suggestions: [
          {
            authenticationRequest: {
              oauth: {
                clientId: OAUTH_CLIENT_ID,
                codeChallenge: OAUTH_CODE_CHALLENGE,
                scopes: [OAUTH_SCOPE]
              }
            }
          },
        ],
      },
    };

    // Call the message create function using the
    // Business Messages client library
    bmApi.conversations.messages.create(apiParams,
      {auth: authClient}, (err, response) => {
      console.log(err);
      console.log(response);
    });
  }
  else {
    console.log('Authentication failure.');
  }
}

/**
 * Initializes the Google credentials for calling the
 * Business Messages API.
 */
 async function initCredentials() {
  // configure a JWT auth client
  const authClient = new google.auth.JWT(
    privatekey.client_email,
    null,
    privatekey.private_key,
    scopes,
  );

  return new Promise(function(resolve, reject) {
    // authenticate request
    authClient.authorize(function(err, tokens) {
      if (err) {
        reject(false);
      } else {
        resolve(authClient);
      }
    });
  });
}

sendMessage(CONVERSATION_ID, 'BOT');
send-message-authentication-request-suggestion.js

Python

"""Sends a text message to the user with an authentication request suggestion.

It allows the user to authenticate with OAuth and has a fallback text.
Read more: https://developers.google.com/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/message/send?hl=en#authentication-request-suggestion

This code is based on the https://github.com/google-business-communications/python-businessmessages
Python Business Messages client library.
"""

import uuid

from businessmessages import businessmessages_v1_client as bm_client
from businessmessages.businessmessages_v1_messages import BusinessMessagesAuthenticationRequest
from businessmessages.businessmessages_v1_messages import BusinessMessagesAuthenticationRequestOauth
from businessmessages.businessmessages_v1_messages import BusinessmessagesConversationsMessagesCreateRequest
from businessmessages.businessmessages_v1_messages import BusinessMessagesMessage
from businessmessages.businessmessages_v1_messages import BusinessMessagesRepresentative
from businessmessages.businessmessages_v1_messages import BusinessMessagesSuggestion
from oauth2client.service_account import ServiceAccountCredentials

# Before continuing, learn more about the prerequisites for authenticating
# with OAuth at: https://developers.google.com/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/integrate/oauth?hl=en

# Edit the values below:
path_to_service_account_key = './service_account_key.json'
conversation_id = 'EDIT_HERE'
oauth_client_id = 'EDIT_HERE'
oauth_code_challenge = 'EDIT_HERE'
oauth_scope = 'EDIT_HERE'

credentials = ServiceAccountCredentials.from_json_keyfile_name(
    path_to_service_account_key,
    scopes=['https://www.googleapis.com/auth/businessmessages'])

client = bm_client.BusinessmessagesV1(credentials=credentials)

representative_type_as_string = 'BOT'
if representative_type_as_string == 'BOT':
  representative_type = BusinessMessagesRepresentative.RepresentativeTypeValueValuesEnum.BOT
else:
  representative_type = BusinessMessagesRepresentative.RepresentativeTypeValueValuesEnum.HUMAN

# Create a text message with an authentication request
message = BusinessMessagesMessage(
    messageId=str(uuid.uuid4().int),
    representative=BusinessMessagesRepresentative(
        representativeType=representative_type
    ),
    text='Sign in to continue the conversation.',
    fallback='Visit support.growingtreebank.com to continue.',
    suggestions=[
        BusinessMessagesSuggestion(
            authenticationRequest=BusinessMessagesAuthenticationRequest(
                oauth=BusinessMessagesAuthenticationRequestOauth(
                    clientId=oauth_client_id,
                    codeChallenge=oauth_code_challenge,
                    scopes=[oauth_scope])
                )
            ),
        ]
    )

# Create the message request
create_request = BusinessmessagesConversationsMessagesCreateRequest(
    businessMessagesMessage=message,
    parent='conversations/' + conversation_id)

# Send the message
bm_client.BusinessmessagesV1.ConversationsMessagesService(
    client=client).Create(request=create_request)
send-message-authentication-request-suggestion.py

1. When the user taps the suggestion and successfully signs in, you receive a message at your agent's webhook. Retrieve the authorization code from the authenticationResponse.code field.

Once you receive the message, you can exchange the authorization code and code verifier for an access token from your OAuth provider. You can access user data with the access token.

For a sample conversation with authentication, including code samples, see Authenticate the user.