Main Library of Warsaw University of Technology - Predatory journals and conferences

Criteria characterising predatory journals

• Lack of a proper peer-review and editorial process.
• Lack of a full publisher’s address or provision of false contact details (most often, only an email form is available).
• A fictitious editorial board – the journal provides false names or uses the names of recognised scientists (including as alleged reviewers) who have never collaborated with it.
• Editors use email addresses in publicly available domains (e.g. @gmail.com, @yahoo.com).
• The publication of false bibliometric indicators on the website (e.g. a fictitious Impact Factor or its imitations, such as View Factor, Science Impact Factor, Global Impact Factor, Unofficial Impact Factor) and false information about the journal’s indexing in recognised abstract databases.
• Journal titles that are strikingly similar to those of prestigious journals (the differences are often limited to a single word in the title).
• A lack of procedures to verify the originality of texts (e.g. for plagiarism).
• Conducting an aggressive email campaign urging researchers to submit manuscripts.
• No explicit information about publication costs (figures are provided to the author individually by email).
• Publication of almost all submitted manuscripts following payment of a fee, which is usually charged in advance and before the manuscript is officially accepted for publication.
• An unusually rapid ‘peer review’ process, with manuscripts accepted for publication within just a few days of submission and often without any reviewers’ comments.
• Failure to uphold basic academic standards in the peer review process.
• Acceptance of manuscripts previously rejected by other publishers.
• Publishing a very large number of articles (even several thousand) per year.
• A lack of clear rules regarding the retraction of articles submitted for publication and those already published.
• The possibility of adding fictitious co-authors in exchange for a fee, despite their lack of contribution to the work.

Tips

How to avoid publishing in predatory journals:

• You should carefully check the journal’s title, its ISSN or eISSN number, its website (including information on the peer-review process, editorial board and subject scope), as well as the publisher’s general activities, for example by reviewing previously published articles.
• It is advisable to verify the journal, its bibliometric indicators and its indexing in reputable international databases, such as Web of Science, Scopus and the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ).
• Particular attention should be paid to the level of publication fees and to the requirements and rules for publication – these should be clearly and transparently set out on the journal’s website.

Criteria characterising predatory conferences

Some of the criteria characterising predatory journals and predatory publishers are the same as those for predatory conferences.

• The invitation is not sent from an institutional email address.
• The identity and location of the organisers are concealed.
• Invitations are sent to people with no connection to the subject matter of the conference.
• The conference organiser is also its sponsor.
• The conference organiser runs conferences on different subject areas at the same time.
• The conference organisers are using academic titles and degrees to which they are not entitled.
• The conference website looks unprofessional.
• Researchers’ personal data and images are used without their knowledge or consent.
• The logos of reputable institutions are displayed on the conference website to suggest collaboration where none actually exists.
• The names of the conferences are very similar to those of events organised by prestigious academic centres, thereby sharing the same acronym.
• The conference is described as ‘international’, even though the organising committee and the majority of speakers are from a single country.
• Speakers receive confirmation of acceptance before the call for papers has closed.

Tips

How to avoid participating in predatory conferences:

• You should carefully check the conference title, its organiser, website, the composition of the scientific and organising committees, and the scope of topics covered.
• Particular attention should be paid to fees, requirements and rules regarding participation and the publication of post-conference materials.