A technique for sensor network, Machine to Machine (M2M), Machine Type Communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT) is provided. The present disclosure can be applied to intelligent services (smart homes, smart buildings, smart cities, smart cars or connected cars, health care, digital education, retail, security and safety service) based on the technique. A method for operating a user equipment (UE) is provided. The method includes receiving a first signal comprising a first category identification (ID) and a first unique ID from a first beacon device, determining a distance from the first beacon device based on the first signal, if the distance is below a threshold, registering the first category ID, and if a second signal comprising the registered first category ID from a second beacon device, displaying information corresponding to a second unique ID of the second signal.