Want to know whether that journal is scamming you? Introducing the Retraction Watch Hijacked Journal Checker

Have you heard about hijacked journals?

Hijacked journals mimic legitimate journals by adopting their titles, ISSNs, and other metadata. Usually, hijacked journals mirror legitimate journals without permission from the original journal. In rare instances, publishers will buy rights to a legitimate journal but continue the publication under considerably less stringent publishing protocols and without clearly noting to the reader the change in ownership or publication standards (sometimes known as “cloned” journals).

Scholars can be duped into publishing in hijacked journals – many of which require fees – by offers of fast publication and indexing in databases such as Scopus; being indexed in such databases is viewed by many universities and governments as a mark of legitimacy. Even the WHO’s COVID literature database has been fooled.

We’re hoping to put an end to that sort of thing: Introducing the Retraction Watch Hijacked Journal Checker.

Tracking these journals is no mean feat, but knowing which journals may have been hijacked is vital to the world of publishing integrity. Anna Abalkina became involved in the process when she and her colleagues, investigating allegations of plagiarism, came across several titles including the Journal of Talent Development and Excellence, which drastically increased its indexing of papers in Scopus in 2020, and Waffen-und Kostümkunde, a journal which cited a paper on psychology absolutely unrelated to the weapons and costume specialization of the journal. Abalkina then began analyzing these journal archives and found overlaps with other apparently hijacked journals, devoting huge swaths of time locating and cross-checking the validity of journals suspected of hijacking or of being hijacked.

In partnership with Retraction Watch, Abalkina created the Retraction Watch Hijacked Journal Checker. This resource is dynamic; more journals will be added as their hijacked status are uncovered. (Have a title for consideration? Please use this form.) That means it requires ongoing resources, and we hope that you will consider supporting the effort by making a U.S. tax-deductible donation using Square or by sending a check made out to The Center For Scientific Integrity, with “Checker” in the memo field, and sent to 121 W. 36th St., Suite 209, New York, NY 10018.

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