Upsert contact channel — Brigg developers

Access & visibility

Allow support.UpsertContactChannel on your API key. Resource read permissions: core:ContactChannel. Resource write permissions: core:ContactChannel.

Workspace access by default. Private member data requires approved member delegation through Brigg-Act-As; the key supplies permissions while private ownership and project boundaries remain enforced.

Set up authentication · Choose permissions

Request fields

Send a JSON object with the following fields. Required fields must be included; omit optional fields you do not need.

dataContactChannelRequired

The record's fields.

ContactChannel

Contact identity3 fields

kindstringRequired

Channel identity type: email, phone, web_cookie, sms or other.

Allowed: "email", "phone", "web_cookie", "sms", "other".

addressstringRequired

Channel address: a normalized email address, international phone number or channel-specific identifier. This is not a postal address.

person_refstringRequired

ID of a core:Person record. Find it with customers.ListPeople and use the top-level id. This is not an account ID or a display name.

privatebooleanOptional

Defaults to false: the record is shared with the workspace. True assigns private ownership to the approved acting member and requires member delegation. This is independent of created_by provenance.

external_refobjectRequired

Permanent, case-sensitive source identity within this workspace, resource type and private/workspace scope. It is independent of API key rotation and retry receipt expiry.

Nested fields

namespacestringRequired

A stable name for the source system, such as crm-production.

At least 1 character.

idstringRequired

The record ID in that source system.

At least 1 character.

Sync with a permanent external reference

Choose a stable external_ref.namespace for your source system and put its record ID in external_ref.id. Matching is case-sensitive and scoped to this workspace, resource type and private/workspace ownership. The reference survives API key replacement and the 30-day retry receipt window. It does not match records by email or name.

Send the required create fields each time. A missing reference creates a record; an existing reference updates only supplied fields and preserves everything else. created tells you which happened. Use the same idempotency key when retrying a lost response and a new key for a later source change. Concurrent calls cannot create duplicate records. A deleted or inaccessible match is refused; the operation does not restore it or make a replacement.

Use the returned item.id with the regular update operation when you need unset or a conditional expected edit. Changing private chooses a different ownership scope; it does not transfer an existing record.

Response

Returns 200 OK with a JSON body.

Record metadata sits outside data. Timestamps created_at and updated_at are Unix milliseconds. Optional business fields may be absent; absence does not mean false or zero. A field accepts null only when its type includes null.

A contact channel links a communication identity to a Person record; it does not create an inbox or send a message. Use a Person record ID, not a workspace account ID. Supply an email address or international phone number in the channel's canonical form.

Creating or linking a channel is not proof that the person controls that address. verified_at is maintained by the verification workflow and is not writable through these record operations.

itemContactChannelRecordRequired

The requested record, including its metadata and data fields.

ContactChannelRecord

idstringRequired

Stable core:ContactChannel record ID. Keep this top-level value when reading or referring to this record. Available actions are linked under Next steps; an ID does not imply the resource can be edited.

created_atnumberRequired

Time the record was created, in Unix milliseconds.

updated_atnumberRequired

Time the record most recently changed, in Unix milliseconds. Use with overlapping windows for incremental reads.

created_bystring or nullRequired

Account that originally created the record, or null for a workspace/system-originated record. This is provenance, not its current owner or a Person record ID.

privatebooleanRequired

True for a member-owned private record. An API key needs approved delegation to that owner; false alone does not bypass resource grants or other access rules.

dataContactChannelRequired

The record's fields.

ContactChannel

Contact identity3 fields

kindstringRequired

Channel identity type: email, phone, web_cookie, sms or other.

Allowed: "email", "phone", "web_cookie", "sms", "other".

addressstringRequired

Channel address: a normalized email address, international phone number or channel-specific identifier. This is not a postal address.

person_refstringRequired

ID of a core:Person record. Find it with customers.ListPeople and use the top-level id. This is not an account ID or a display name.

Verification1 fields

verified_atnumberOptional

Time control of this channel address was verified, in Unix milliseconds. May be absent when verification has not been recorded.

createdbooleanRequired

True when this external reference created a record; false when it matched an existing record.

Errors & retries

Set BRIGG_REQUEST_ID once for each logical action. The samples send it as Idempotency-Key. Reuse the same value and body on retries, including after a timeout; a missing response does not prove the action failed.

For rate limits, follow the server’s retry guidance and back off. See HTTP errors and safe retries and limits.

HTTP status	Code	What to do
400	`invalid_json`	Send a JSON object with Content-Type: application/json.
400	`invalid_input`	Check the request fields and types. Supply a stable Idempotency-Key containing 1–200 characters.
401	`invalid_key`	The workspace API key is missing, invalid or revoked.
403	`forbidden`	Check the key’s operation and resource grants. If Brigg-Act-As is supplied, the key must be authorized to delegate to that member.
404	`not_found`	The requested operation or resource is not available to this credential.
429	`rate_limited`	Wait for Retry-After before retrying. Reuse the original Idempotency-Key.

Next steps

Download OpenAPI · Versioning & retirement

JSON schemas

Use the complete schemas for validation or client generation.

Full request JSON schema

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "data": {
      "type": "object",
      "properties": {
        "kind": {
          "type": "string",
          "enum": [
            "email",
            "phone",
            "web_cookie",
            "sms",
            "other"
          ],
          "description": "Channel identity type: email, phone, web_cookie, sms or other."
        },
        "address": {
          "type": "string",
          "description": "Channel address: a normalized email address, international phone number or channel-specific identifier. This is not a postal address."
        },
        "person_ref": {
          "type": "string",
          "description": "ID of a `core:Person` record. Find it with [customers.ListPeople](/reference/customers/ListPeople) and use the top-level `id`. This is not an account ID or a display name."
        }
      },
      "required": [
        "kind",
        "address",
        "person_ref"
      ],
      "additionalProperties": false,
      "description": "The record's fields.",
      "title": "ContactChannel"
    },
    "private": {
      "type": "boolean",
      "description": "Defaults to false: the record is shared with the workspace. True assigns private ownership to the approved acting member and requires member delegation. This is independent of created_by provenance."
    },
    "external_ref": {
      "type": "object",
      "description": "Permanent, case-sensitive source identity within this workspace, resource type and private/workspace scope. It is independent of API key rotation and retry receipt expiry.",
      "properties": {
        "namespace": {
          "type": "string",
          "minLength": 1,
          "description": "A stable name for the source system, such as crm-production."
        },
        "id": {
          "type": "string",
          "minLength": 1,
          "description": "The record ID in that source system."
        }
      },
      "required": [
        "namespace",
        "id"
      ],
      "additionalProperties": false
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "external_ref",
    "data"
  ],
  "additionalProperties": false,
  "examples": [
    {
      "external_ref": {
        "namespace": "crm-production",
        "id": "customer-1042"
      },
      "data": {
        "kind": "email",
        "address": "alex@example.org",
        "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
      }
    }
  ]
}

Full response JSON schema

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "item": {
      "type": "object",
      "properties": {
        "id": {
          "type": "string",
          "description": "Stable core:ContactChannel record ID. Keep this top-level value when reading or referring to this record. Available actions are linked under Next steps; an ID does not imply the resource can be edited."
        },
        "created_at": {
          "type": "number",
          "description": "Time the record was created, in Unix milliseconds."
        },
        "updated_at": {
          "type": "number",
          "description": "Time the record most recently changed, in Unix milliseconds. Use with overlapping windows for incremental reads."
        },
        "created_by": {
          "type": [
            "string",
            "null"
          ],
          "description": "Account that originally created the record, or null for a workspace/system-originated record. This is provenance, not its current owner or a Person record ID."
        },
        "private": {
          "type": "boolean",
          "description": "True for a member-owned private record. An API key needs approved delegation to that owner; false alone does not bypass resource grants or other access rules."
        },
        "data": {
          "type": "object",
          "properties": {
            "kind": {
              "type": "string",
              "enum": [
                "email",
                "phone",
                "web_cookie",
                "sms",
                "other"
              ],
              "description": "Channel identity type: email, phone, web_cookie, sms or other."
            },
            "address": {
              "type": "string",
              "description": "Channel address: a normalized email address, international phone number or channel-specific identifier. This is not a postal address."
            },
            "person_ref": {
              "type": "string",
              "description": "ID of a `core:Person` record. Find it with [customers.ListPeople](/reference/customers/ListPeople) and use the top-level `id`. This is not an account ID or a display name."
            },
            "verified_at": {
              "type": "number",
              "description": "Time control of this channel address was verified, in Unix milliseconds. May be absent when verification has not been recorded."
            }
          },
          "required": [
            "kind",
            "address",
            "person_ref"
          ],
          "additionalProperties": false,
          "description": "The record's fields.",
          "title": "ContactChannel"
        }
      },
      "required": [
        "id",
        "created_at",
        "updated_at",
        "created_by",
        "private",
        "data"
      ],
      "additionalProperties": false,
      "description": "The requested record, including its metadata and data fields.",
      "title": "ContactChannelRecord"
    },
    "created": {
      "type": "boolean",
      "description": "True when this external reference created a record; false when it matched an existing record."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "item",
    "created"
  ],
  "additionalProperties": false,
  "examples": [
    {
      "item": {
        "id": "e_contactchannel_example",
        "created_at": 1791276900000,
        "updated_at": 1791280800000,
        "created_by": "a_jamie",
        "private": false,
        "data": {
          "kind": "email",
          "address": "alex@example.org",
          "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
        }
      },
      "created": true
    }
  ]
}

Try the request

Use your API key in a server environment.

Example scenarioAct as a memberRequires administrator-approved delegation.

Fictional values. Replace IDs and business details with values from your workspace.

Request

cURL

curl 'https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $BRIGG_API_KEY" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -H "Idempotency-Key: $BRIGG_REQUEST_ID" \
  --data-raw '{
  "external_ref": {
    "namespace": "crm-production",
    "id": "customer-1042"
  },
  "data": {
    "kind": "email",
    "address": "alex@example.org",
    "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
  }
}'

TypeScript

const requestId = process.env.BRIGG_REQUEST_ID;
if (!requestId) throw new Error("Set BRIGG_REQUEST_ID once per action and reuse it on retries.");

const response = await fetch("https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: {
    Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.BRIGG_API_KEY}`,
    "Content-Type": "application/json",
    "Idempotency-Key": requestId, // Create once per action; reuse on retries.
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    "external_ref": {
      "namespace": "crm-production",
      "id": "customer-1042"
    },
    "data": {
      "kind": "email",
      "address": "alex@example.org",
      "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
    }
  }),
});
const result = await response.json();
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`${response.status}: ${result.error} — ${result.message}`);
console.log(result);

Python

import json
import os
from urllib.request import Request, urlopen
from urllib.error import HTTPError

request_id = os.environ["BRIGG_REQUEST_ID"]  # Reuse for retries of this action.
payload = {
  "external_ref": {
    "namespace": "crm-production",
    "id": "customer-1042"
  },
  "data": {
    "kind": "email",
    "address": "alex@example.org",
    "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
  }
}
request = Request(
    "https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel",
    data=json.dumps(payload).encode("utf-8"),
    headers={
        "Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['BRIGG_API_KEY']}",
        "Content-Type": "application/json",
        "Idempotency-Key": request_id,  # Create once per action; reuse on retries.
    },
    method="POST",
)
try:
    with urlopen(request) as response:
        print(json.load(response))
except HTTPError as error:
    print(error.code, json.load(error))
    raise

cURL

curl 'https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $BRIGG_API_KEY" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -H "Brigg-Act-As: $BRIGG_ACT_AS" \
  -H "Idempotency-Key: $BRIGG_REQUEST_ID" \
  --data-raw '{
  "external_ref": {
    "namespace": "crm-production",
    "id": "customer-1042"
  },
  "data": {
    "kind": "email",
    "address": "alex@example.org",
    "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
  }
}'

TypeScript

const actAs = process.env.BRIGG_ACT_AS;
if (!actAs) throw new Error("Set BRIGG_ACT_AS to an approved member account ID.");

const requestId = process.env.BRIGG_REQUEST_ID;
if (!requestId) throw new Error("Set BRIGG_REQUEST_ID once per action and reuse it on retries.");

const response = await fetch("https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: {
    Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.BRIGG_API_KEY}`,
    "Content-Type": "application/json",
    "Brigg-Act-As": actAs,
    "Idempotency-Key": requestId, // Create once per action; reuse on retries.
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    "external_ref": {
      "namespace": "crm-production",
      "id": "customer-1042"
    },
    "data": {
      "kind": "email",
      "address": "alex@example.org",
      "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
    }
  }),
});
const result = await response.json();
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`${response.status}: ${result.error} — ${result.message}`);
console.log(result);

Python

import json
import os
from urllib.request import Request, urlopen
from urllib.error import HTTPError

request_id = os.environ["BRIGG_REQUEST_ID"]  # Reuse for retries of this action.
payload = {
  "external_ref": {
    "namespace": "crm-production",
    "id": "customer-1042"
  },
  "data": {
    "kind": "email",
    "address": "alex@example.org",
    "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
  }
}
request = Request(
    "https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel",
    data=json.dumps(payload).encode("utf-8"),
    headers={
        "Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['BRIGG_API_KEY']}",
        "Content-Type": "application/json",
        "Brigg-Act-As": os.environ["BRIGG_ACT_AS"],
        "Idempotency-Key": request_id,  # Create once per action; reuse on retries.
    },
    method="POST",
)
try:
    with urlopen(request) as response:
        print(json.load(response))
except HTTPError as error:
    print(error.code, json.load(error))
    raise

200 OK Response example

{
  "item": {
    "id": "e_contactchannel_example",
    "created_at": 1791276900000,
    "updated_at": 1791280800000,
    "created_by": "a_jamie",
    "private": false,
    "data": {
      "kind": "email",
      "address": "alex@example.org",
      "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
    }
  },
  "created": true
}

Illustrative values, not a live response.

The same external reference returns the same record ID. Use a new idempotency key for a later source change.

Request

cURL

curl 'https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $BRIGG_API_KEY" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -H "Idempotency-Key: $BRIGG_REQUEST_ID" \
  --data-raw '{
  "external_ref": {
    "namespace": "crm-production",
    "id": "customer-1042"
  },
  "data": {
    "kind": "email",
    "address": "alex@example.org",
    "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
  }
}'

TypeScript

const requestId = process.env.BRIGG_REQUEST_ID;
if (!requestId) throw new Error("Set BRIGG_REQUEST_ID once per action and reuse it on retries.");

const response = await fetch("https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: {
    Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.BRIGG_API_KEY}`,
    "Content-Type": "application/json",
    "Idempotency-Key": requestId, // Create once per action; reuse on retries.
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    "external_ref": {
      "namespace": "crm-production",
      "id": "customer-1042"
    },
    "data": {
      "kind": "email",
      "address": "alex@example.org",
      "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
    }
  }),
});
const result = await response.json();
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`${response.status}: ${result.error} — ${result.message}`);
console.log(result);

Python

import json
import os
from urllib.request import Request, urlopen
from urllib.error import HTTPError

request_id = os.environ["BRIGG_REQUEST_ID"]  # Reuse for retries of this action.
payload = {
  "external_ref": {
    "namespace": "crm-production",
    "id": "customer-1042"
  },
  "data": {
    "kind": "email",
    "address": "alex@example.org",
    "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
  }
}
request = Request(
    "https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel",
    data=json.dumps(payload).encode("utf-8"),
    headers={
        "Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['BRIGG_API_KEY']}",
        "Content-Type": "application/json",
        "Idempotency-Key": request_id,  # Create once per action; reuse on retries.
    },
    method="POST",
)
try:
    with urlopen(request) as response:
        print(json.load(response))
except HTTPError as error:
    print(error.code, json.load(error))
    raise

cURL

curl 'https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $BRIGG_API_KEY" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -H "Brigg-Act-As: $BRIGG_ACT_AS" \
  -H "Idempotency-Key: $BRIGG_REQUEST_ID" \
  --data-raw '{
  "external_ref": {
    "namespace": "crm-production",
    "id": "customer-1042"
  },
  "data": {
    "kind": "email",
    "address": "alex@example.org",
    "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
  }
}'

TypeScript

const actAs = process.env.BRIGG_ACT_AS;
if (!actAs) throw new Error("Set BRIGG_ACT_AS to an approved member account ID.");

const requestId = process.env.BRIGG_REQUEST_ID;
if (!requestId) throw new Error("Set BRIGG_REQUEST_ID once per action and reuse it on retries.");

const response = await fetch("https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: {
    Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.BRIGG_API_KEY}`,
    "Content-Type": "application/json",
    "Brigg-Act-As": actAs,
    "Idempotency-Key": requestId, // Create once per action; reuse on retries.
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    "external_ref": {
      "namespace": "crm-production",
      "id": "customer-1042"
    },
    "data": {
      "kind": "email",
      "address": "alex@example.org",
      "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
    }
  }),
});
const result = await response.json();
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`${response.status}: ${result.error} — ${result.message}`);
console.log(result);

Python

import json
import os
from urllib.request import Request, urlopen
from urllib.error import HTTPError

request_id = os.environ["BRIGG_REQUEST_ID"]  # Reuse for retries of this action.
payload = {
  "external_ref": {
    "namespace": "crm-production",
    "id": "customer-1042"
  },
  "data": {
    "kind": "email",
    "address": "alex@example.org",
    "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
  }
}
request = Request(
    "https://api.brigg.app/v1/operations/support.UpsertContactChannel",
    data=json.dumps(payload).encode("utf-8"),
    headers={
        "Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['BRIGG_API_KEY']}",
        "Content-Type": "application/json",
        "Brigg-Act-As": os.environ["BRIGG_ACT_AS"],
        "Idempotency-Key": request_id,  # Create once per action; reuse on retries.
    },
    method="POST",
)
try:
    with urlopen(request) as response:
        print(json.load(response))
except HTTPError as error:
    print(error.code, json.load(error))
    raise

200 OK Response example

{
  "item": {
    "id": "e_contactchannel_example",
    "created_at": 1791276900000,
    "updated_at": 1791280800000,
    "created_by": "a_jamie",
    "private": false,
    "data": {
      "kind": "email",
      "address": "alex@example.org",
      "person_ref": "e_person_alex"
    }
  },
  "created": false
}

Illustrative values, not a live response.