Publications

Why and how to avoid predatory journals?

Publishing in a predatory journal presents a number of risks:

  • a breach of scientific integrity (see the European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity), with an impact on the reputation of the author, their laboratory and their institution
  • financial loss through loss of work or double submission
  • loss of publications when the journal shuts down
  • difficulty in republishing elsewhere, with suspicion of plagiarism likely
  • risk of loss of public confidence in science, particularly when these publications are picked up by the media

Warning signs

  • publication easily and very quickly accepted (from a few days to 2 or 3 months)
  • unsolicited emails asking recipients to publish, to be a peer reviewer, to be on the editorial committee...
  • submission of publications by e-mail, not via a dedicated platform
  • non-institutional email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo...)
  • APCs: information about APCs is difficult or impossible to find, and the amount is often very low
  • Website: impractical or sloppily designed navigation, poor spelling or syntax, excessive emphasis on the high level or high impact of the journal...
  • Misleading metrics: journals use misleading indicators with names similar to the impact factor.
    • some examples: universal ImpactFactor, Citefactor, Rji Factor, Cosmos Impact Factor...
  • Misleading or fraudulent name: misuse of the name of an existing journal or use of a name very close to that of a prestigious journal
    • for example by adding ‘the International Journal of’ or ‘the European Journal of’.
  • Editorial committee: this may be non-existent, very small, or hard to find. The members are from a single country even though the journal claims to be international, the members are not experts in the discipline, they have no contact information...

Need help?

Getting the opinion of your peers, by talking to those around you, is often the first step.

On PubPeer, you can consult the scientific community's comments on publications.

You can also ask a librarian: science-ouverteuniv-lillefr

White lists: there are initiatives to identify trustworthy journals in certain disciplines.

What about blacklists?
Please note that blacklists (lists of journals that are not recommended) are not necessarily up to date and cannot include 100% of low-quality journals. They may also be subject to pressure and may be closed.

Beall's list

  • Think Check Submit, launched in 2015 by organisations specialising in scientific publication, including the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). Two questionnaires - one for journals and the other for book publishers - are used to assess whether a publisher is predatory or not.
  • Compass to Publish, developed by ULiège Library, can be used to assess the authenticity of open access journals by answering a series of questions.

What if I've already submitted?

  • Do not pay any fees
  • Do not sign any copyright or author's rights agreement
  • Write a letter to the journal to retract your article before publication
  • Write a letter to the magazine to retract the publication and have it removed from the site
  • Do not mention these publications in your CV or in your other publications
  • Republish in a legitimate journal, taking care to mention the previous problem when submitting your article