Abstract: Some embodiments are directed to a system, an apparatus, and a method for automatically detecting and localizing Aztec barcodes in noisy and low-resolution images. The disclosed method detects Aztec barcodes having a resolution of less than two pixels. The disclosed method can process a gray image that is subjected to a coarse localization process in which the barcode region is segmented from the image consisting of other contents like text, graphics, etc. The localized and segmented barcode is then processed separately to locate the encoded data in the Aztec barcode by considering unique Aztec patterns in the barcode.