Cracking the Tactics of Predatory Journals and Conferences

~ There are risks in submitting articles to journals and participating in conferences. Please read the instructions on this page carefully before you submit or register.

Part 1: Understanding Predatory Journals and Predatory Academic Conference Scams to Avoid Financial and Research Losses.

Predatory journals and conferences have surged as a scholarly scam. They promise rapid review and guaranteed publication, but they bypass rigorous academic review and charge authors high article processing charges (APCs).

Researchers who get caught in these traps face financial losses and risk damaging their academic reputation and the credibility of their articles. If they try to withdraw their submissions, predatory journals may even demand a fee, preventing them from publishing elsewhere.

To avoid losing both money and research outcomes, remember to "Stop, watch, and listen" before submitting your work!

• A spectrum of predatory behaviors for journals：
  1. Guarantees fast review and publication.
  2. The title of the journal is very similar to a regular journal, or specifically has the word international or geographical terms such as "USA," "International Journal," or "European Journal."
  3. Solicits submissions indiscriminately, even if unrelated to the researcher's field.
  4. The field of articles exhibits an unprecedented breadth.
  5. Publishes irregularly, depending on submissions.
  6. Peculiar and not low impact factor.
  7. Claims inclusion in prestigious academic databases with fake links.
  8. Doesn't clearly disclose article processing charges (APCs).
  9. Doesn't provide editor names or uses fake editor information.
  10. Doesn't provide clear publisher information or uses non-institutional email addresses.
• A spectrum of predatory behaviors for conferences：：
  1. Unclear peer review process or guaranteed approval without review.
  2. Spamming researchers with mass email invitations.
  3. Deliberately imitating the names of reputable conferences.
  4. The call for papers that cover a wide range or multiple conferences at the same venue.
  5. The call for papers is unrelated to the researchers' study.
  6. Exaggerated claims about conference size or false speaker information, with little history available.
  7. Emphasizing the venue located in a famous tourist destination, boasting about the scale of the banquet and tourist itinerary.
  8. Offering certificates for presentations without requiring attendance.
  9. Emphasizing that papers will be published in international journals (which are predatory journals).
  10. Does not clearly list the fees.
  11. Lacking clear publisher information or using non-institutional email addresses.

Part 2: Choosing Trustworthy Journals Ensures Security Through Thorough Inquiry.

Predatory journals still lack a precise definition and can change over time. It is recommended that readers utilize relevant databases or websites to select reputable journals before submitting manuscripts.

• Selection tools

Selection tools	Description
Web of Science	The Master Journal List is a free tool from the Web of Science (WOS) database. It lets researchers check if journals are indexed for the current year. Updated monthly, it helps researchers stay updated on journal statuses. Users can search by keywords, journal titles, or ISSNs. They can also filter by disciplines or browse all indexed journals.
Journal Citation Report (JCR)	For professional journals in natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, and emerging sciences, a systematic and objective approach is used to compile statistics such as accumulation, citation data, and the number of publications. This quantifies the evaluation of journal performance. Users can query the Impact Factor (IF) of journals to confirm their quality.
Titles on Scopus	Scopus is an abstract and citation database produced by Elsevier. Users can click on the "Titles on Scopus" section on the Elsevier publisher's website to download a list of journals indexed in Scopus, or search by subject classification code (ASJC) to find journals in specific fields.
Directory of Open Access Journals	The Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) is a database that lists open access journals across all disciplines and languages. Journals included in the DOAJ must be freely accessible with full-text availability and meet peer review or editorial quality standards. It's widely recognized as a reference for open access journals, allowing users to search for journal titles and publisher information to verify whether a journal is predatory or legitimate.
THCI & TSSCI	Taiwan Humanities Citation Index (THCI) primarily indexes journals in fields such as literature, linguistics, history, sociology, and other humanities disciplines. Taiwan Social Sciences Citation Index (TSSCI) primarily indexes journals in fields such as education, psychology, law, political science, and other social sciences disciplines. Since 2016, evaluation methods for these two indices have been consolidated, categorizing journals into three levels annually. Journals rated as Level 1 and Level 2 are included as core journals in Taiwan's Humanities and Social Sciences journals.

• Verification tools

Verification tools	Description
Journal Citation Reports (JCR)	The Web of Science (WOS) Group announces the previous year's journal literature data annually around mid-year. If a journal exhibits extreme abnormal citation behaviors such as journal self-citation or citation stacking, may be included in the JCR (Journal Citation Reports) Warning List. Listing risks delisting from WOS, resulting in no Impact Factor (IF) for that year. Authors are strongly advised to check this Warning List before submitting their manuscripts.
Retraction Watch	Retraction Watch, founded by the US nonprofit Center for Scientific Integrity, ensures transparency in scientific research and publishing by verifying predatory journals through Dr. Anna Abalkina's mechanism. Active since May 2022, it is continually updated.
Beall's list	The list of predatory journals and publishers was established by Jeffrey Beall, a scholar from the University of Colorado Denver's library. Since its creation in 2010, this list has served as a form of oversight over predatory journals. However, it's important to note that the review criteria were established by Jeffrey Beall himself, so users should use it cautiously and carefully.

Part 3: Triple-Checking Before Submission or Registration. Once Payment Is Made Incorrectly, There's No Turning Back.

Researchers are advised to utilize the resources provided on the Center for Taiwan Academic Research Ethics Education for self-checking and confirmation before submission, such as the verification tools offered by Think. Check. Submit：

• Think Check Submit (Journals)
• Think Check Attend (Conference)
• Think Check Submit (Books & Chapters)

※Click to see more. Look more, search more, think more.

• Office of Research and development, NTHU｜Predatory journals and publishing
• Center for Taiwan Academic Research Ethics Education
• Academic Ethics Predatory Journals and Conferences
• Think. Check. Submit. https://thinkchecksubmit.org
• Think. Check. Attend. https://thinkcheckattend.org

※References

1. Beall, J. (2013). Medical publishing triage - chronicling predatory open access publishers. Annals of medicine and surgery (2012), 2(2), 47–49. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2049-0801(13)70035-9
2. Beall, J. (2012). Predatory publishers are corrupting open access. Nature, 489, 179. https://doi.org/10.1038/489179a
3. Think. Check. Attend. https://thinkcheckattend.org
4. Think. Check. Submit. https://thinkchecksubmit.org
5. 江家璇、辜美安（2021）。掠奪性研討會。台灣醫學，25(2)，293-298。https://doi.org/10.6320/FJM.202103_25(2).0017
6. 林奇秀、賴璟毅（2014）。開放近用的陰暗面：掠奪型出版商及其問題。圖書與資訊學刊，(85)，1-21。https://doi.org/10.6575/JoLIS.2014.85.01