LibGuides: Open Access: Predatory Publishing

What is predatory publishing?

Predatory publishers seek to make a profit off of researchers by publishing journal articles without following the peer-review process. Predatory publishers often share the following characteristics:

Soliciting of authors, reviewers, and editors via spam emails
Providing incomplete, incorrect, or no information about their publication fees
Asking for fee payment upon submission of article and not after acceptance
Performing little to no copyediting or proofreading for their website and articles
Not having, or having a fake, peer-review board
Not listing information for an editor or review board
Having a name and logo similar to a major, recognizable journal
Not providing guidelines for authors on their website

Identifying Predatory Publications

Think. Check. Submit.
Through a range of tools and practical resources, this international, cross-sector initiative aims to educate researchers, promote integrity, and build trust in credible research and publications.
Cabell's Predatory Reports
Specialists analyze over 60 behavioral indicators to keep the community aware of the growing threats and to keep academia protected from exploitative operations.
Journals that claim they are indexed in DOAJ but aren't
This spreadsheet, kept up-to-date by the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), is a list of journals that claim that they are indexed by DOAJ but are not. In many cases, these journals will also carry the DOAJ logo without permission.