What is a hi-jacked journals?

Hello readers,

We are thrilled to share the exciting news that the Journal of Medical Advances (JOMA) and Dental Journal of Advance Studies (DJAS) has achieved a significant milestone by being indexed in the prestigious Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). This is a moment of pride for the entire JOMA & DJAS team, and we extend our heartfelt thanks to the Editorial Board of both the journals for their invaluable contribution. We invite you to visit the journals website and be a part of this remarkable journey by submitting your article to further the advancement of the journal.

In our last issue, we discussed Creative Commons (CC) licenses—free public licenses that empower authors to grant the public permission to share and use their creative work under certain conditions. These licenses play a important role in improving accessibility and visibility to research, leading to the sharing and promotion of knowledge.

Have you heard people complaining that they are unable to identify the journals they want to submit to…. As many similar journals appear when one searches. This month, we’ll be discussing a serious issue—one that is currently damaging the integrity of scholarly publications—namely, hijacked journals.

What is a hi-jacked journals?

Hijacked journals are fraudulent websites mimicking genuine academic journals. These fake sites copy the titles, ISSNs, and other details of real journals to deceive researchers into paying publication fees without providing genuine peer review or recognition.

There are instances of some hijacked journals that would help to understand the extent of the problem. Take, for instance, Community Practitioner; a genuine journal was cloned by predatory publishers. Moreover, there were at least 900 articles in Scopus which were published under hijacked Community Practitioner’s name, most of them with plagiarized contents. The incident show how easily these players access academic databases and do severe damage.

Annals of the Romanian Society for Cell Biology could serve as another case study. An aggressive journal that charged extraordinary fees for fast publication and claimed it had published more than 5,000 papers in one year! The journal’s editor-in-chief was a fictitious person, highlighting the lack of oversight and accountability in the predatory publishing industry.

They generate fake journals branded with names closely like recognized scholarly publishers by manipulating journal and publisher names and then using them on their websites to exploit researchers financially—even from the biggest publishers. For example, they would change the name of a well-known journal or claim they have a high impact factor, which is invalid. Most often, hijacked journals fake open access and misuse CC licenses with misleading statements; hence, they can attract naive scholars. This is also harmful not only for researchers but in a broader sense; it undermines the development of trust toward the open access model, which is expected to make research accessible and transparent.

These hijacked publications imitate real journals to confuse indexing services and reach a wide audience by manipulating metadata. This allows them to disseminate substandard or even fabricated research, tarnishing the database's reputation and misleading researchers and policymakers.

The impacts of infiltration are extensive. Authors who make submissions in hijacked journals may suffer damage to their reputations and academic sanctions. Institutions that evaluate faculty based on publications in indexed journals may inadvertently reward fraudulent research. Moreover, the increase in low-quality, predatory content dilutes the value of legitimate research and makes it more difficult to identify credible sources of information.

How to Protect Yourself?

Listed below are some steps that a researcher can take to protect his or her research and avoid hijacked or predatory journals:

1. Review Carefully the Call-for-Paper Emails: Be suspicious of unsolicited invitation emails for submitting papers. First, check whether the sender is genuine; secondly, verify the credibility of the journal.

2. Check the Credibility of the Journal: Ensure that the journal is covered in reputable databases. The warning signs include high publication fees, unknown scope information, and publishing guidelines.

3. Check the Quality and Originality of Published Papers: One can access published articles to check their quality and relevance.

4. Check the Authenticity of the Editorial Board: The editorial board must comprise eminent and recognized experts in that area of research. Be wary of journals with ill-defined or even non-existent editorial boards.

5. Be cautious of Very Short Peer Review Times: Any credible journal always has some form of peer review. Be wary of journals that promise very short review times or none.

6. Seek from Peers: Discuss your plans to publish with peers or mentors who have been through similar experiences and are in a position to offer you valuable advice and insight about the journal's legitimacy.

7. Beware of Vague or Suspiciously Low Author Fees: Basically, predatory journals lure victims with low fees, while in most cases, they have hidden charges or offer low services.

8. Poor Web Design and Direct Email Submissions Should Alarm You: Most of the time, a website with poor design or a demand for papers to be submitted via direct email might be suspicious.

9. Keep Yourself Informed: Obtain the most current details on hijacked journals and updates concerning predatory publishing from authentic sources.

By following these guidelines, researchers would avoid this kind of hijacked journal with a substantial risk margin and ensure the integrity of their work.

How to Safeguard the Integrity of Scholarly Journals?

The academic community must proactively maintain the integrity of scholarly journals. This can be achieved by building strong, secure journal websites, registering multiple domain names, and updating URLs on third-party platforms, which involves [specific process]. The validity of journals can also be ensured through reputable indexes, such as the Directory of Open Access Journals and Web of Science.

Communication and transparency from journals can help raise awareness and prevent hijackings. However, the continuing activity of these fraudulent demands ongoing attention and action from the academic community. Your attentiveness and commitment are crucial in protecting the integrity of academic publishing.

Do you have a story about a close call with a hijacked journal? Share your experience with us…

Thank you, dear readers, for your continuing support and contribution. We look forward to your positive participation and valuable submissions to JOMA and DJAS.

Thankyou?

During the creation of this newsletter, the following websites helped to compile:

1.https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-02399-1 2. https://clarivate.com/blog/hijacked-journals-what-they-are-and-how-to-avoid-them/ 3. https://retractionwatch.com/2021/05/26/how-hijacked-journals-keep-fooling-one-of-the-worlds-leading-databases/ 4. https://retractionwatch.com/2024/07/08/the-wolf-in-scopus-clothing-another-hijacked-journal-has-indexed-nearly-900-articles/ 5. https://retractionwatch.com/2023/02/07/the-whack-a-mole-problem-hijacked-journal-still-being-indexed-in-scopus-even-after-discovery/ 6. https://retractionwatch.com/2023/12/28/elseviers-scopus-deletes-journal-links-following-revelations-of-hijacked-indexed-journals/

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