A method and an electronic device are provided in association with iris recognition. The electronic device includes a camera module that obtains a Near-Infrared Ray (NIR) image, and a controller that converts the NIR image into an integral image, detects at least one candidate eye region from the integral image using at least one mask, detects a pupil region and an eyebrow region from the at least one candidate eye region, and to detect an eye region based on the pupil region.