Predatory Journals

How can I identify trusted journals and conferences?

Publishing due diligence by think - check - submit

Fake journals - fake conferences - bootleged - rebranded?

Want to check if you can trust a certain journal/publisher/conferences provider?
Checklists for books, bookchapters, journals and conferences from Think Check Submit
Think Check Submit is a campaign to help researchers identify trusted publishers for their research. It is a simple checklist researchers can use to assess the credentials of a journal or publisher.

Also available in German

Do you or your colleagues know the journal?
Can you easily identify and contact the publisher?
Is the journal clear about the type of peer review it uses?
Are articles indexed in services that you use?
Is it clear what fees will be charged?
Do you recognize the editorial board?
Is the publisher a member of a recognized industry initiative?
Can you find the journal at the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) or the Web of Science?

Literature:

Paper Trail: In the latest twist of the publishing arms race, frims churning out fake papers have taken to bribing jounrnl editors. Joelving, Frederik (2024). Science doi: 10.1126/science.zrjehzt

How do you know a paper is legit? J. West, C. Bergstrom

Misinformation in and about science J.. West, C. Bergstrom, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Apr 2021, 118 (15) e1912444117; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1912444117

Predatory journals: no definition, no defence. Grudniewicz, A., (et. al.) (2019).. Nature, 576(7786), 210-212.

Predatory publishers’ latest scam: bootlegged and rebranded papers. Kyle Siler, Philippe Vincent-Lamarre , Cassidy R. Sugimoto & Vincent Larivière, Nature 598, 563-565 (2021) doi:10.1038/d41586-021-02906-8