Is the Privacy Overlay feature in BVMS supported for third-party (non-Bosch) cameras when integrated with the required AI packages?

Question

Answer

Yes! Third-party (non-Bosch) cameras can support the Privacy overlay feature in BVMS, as long as they are integrated into the system and the AI Privacy overlay setup is correctly licensed and configured.

With License Privacy overlay you can integrate third-party cameras, storage and further systems into BVMS. See KEENFINITY Group | BVMS Plus 12.2 | License Privacy overlay | MBV-FPRIPLU

With BVMS 12.0 and Privacy overlay feature, two different types of setup are introduced:

BVMS Setup (standard) - not containing AI packages for Privacy overlay feature
BVMS Setup with AI - including AI packages for Privacy overlay feature

Please refer to the BVMS Release Notes for applicability of setup packages

According to the BVMS System Design guide, the Privacy overlay is currently not supported for:

Panoramic cameras
Transcoded streams
h.263 and MPEG-4 streams
Video Security Client / Video Security app / MVS
Decoder / Monitor Wall

Note:

Privacy overlay for decoders

In case of decoders, standard Privacy overlay feature is not available. However, it is possible to enforce anonymization with capable Bosch CPP13 cameras, offering Privacy Protection mode for a stream. In such case, user with Privacy overlay enabled in BVMS will only be able to open on a decoder stream from a camera, where Privacy Protection mode was enabled.

Privacy Overlay in BVMS is processed by the VMS itself

The Privacy overlay feature in BVMS is an AI-based anonymization function that runs in the BVMS Operator Client (with the required AI packages installed). It pixelates people detected in the video stream regardless of the camera brand, the processing happens within BVMS, not on the camera.

Third-party cameras must be integrated into BVMS

To use Privacy overlay with non-Bosch cameras, those cameras must first be successfully added to BVMS with VSG (typically via ONVIF Profile S/T) and be supported by BVMS for live and playback viewing. BVMS supports integration of Bosch and third-party cameras. See How to add an ONVIF camera to BVMS through VSG?. If a camera is visible and usable in BVMS (live/playback), it can be included in Privacy overlay.

Licensing & setup requirements

To use the Privacy overlay feature on any camera (Bosch or non-Bosch), you must have:

The Privacy overlay feature license installed in BVMS.
The AI package installed in the BVMS client where the feature will run.
Once this is set up, Privacy overlay can be enabled per camera/user via permissions.

Notes & limitations

Privacy overlay works on the decoded video stream in BVMS; it does not require camera-native analytics.
Some codec/stream limitations (uncommon formats) or extreme resolutions might affect performance, not brand.
Cameras must still be supported by BVMS for basic video streaming (e.g., ONVIF compliance).

Nice to know: