Research Guides: Predatory Publishing: Resources

Himmelfarb's Predatory Publishing Blog Posts

COVID-19 and Predatory Publishing

When Peril Responds to Plague: Predatory journal engagement with COVID-19
Allen, R. M. (2021). When peril responds to plague: predatory journal engagement with COVID-19. Library Hi Tech.
Hydroxychloroquine, Push-scooters, and COVID-19: A Journal Gets Stung, and Swiftly Retracts
Marcus, A. Retraction Watch. August 16, 2020.
An Alert to COVID-19 Literature in Predatory Publishing Venues
Teixeira da Silva. (2020). An alert to COVID-19 literature in predatory publishing venues. The Journal of Academic Librarianship. (46)5.
Money Down the Drain: Predatory Publishing in the COVID-19 Era
Vervoort, D., Ma, X., & Shrime, M. G. (2020). Money down the drain: Predatory publishing in the COVID-19 era. Canadian Journal of Public Health, 1-2.
Publishing Volumes in Major Databases Related to Covid-19
Teixeira da Silva, J.A., Tsigaris, P. & Erfanmanesh, M. Publishing volumes in major databases related to Covid-19. Scientometrics (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-020-03675-3
‘Collaborate Now with Worldwide Physicians and Scientists!’—The Obscenity of Predatory Science
Evelyne de Leeuw, ‘Collaborate now with worldwide physicians and scientists!’—the obscenity of predatory science, Health Promotion International, Volume 35, Issue 4, August 2020, Pages 633–638, https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daaa078

Articles About Predatory Publishing

Of Special Issues and Journal Purges
Petrou, C. The Scholarly Kitchen, March 30, 2023.
Nearly 20 Hindawi Journals Delisted from Leading Index Amid Concerns of Papermill Activity
Kincaid, E. Retraction Watch, March 21, 2023.
The Mysterious Case of the Nonsense Papers A peer-reviewed journal published hundreds of them. Why?
Bartlett, T. Chronicle of Higher Education, September 28, 2021.
Imposters Hijack Journal’s Peer Review Process to Publish Substandard Papers
Durrani, J. Chemistry World, January 18, 2021.
Publish and Be Damned: The Damage Being Created by Predatory Publishing
Wallace, W. The Bone & Joint Journal, April 2019
Why Should We Worry about Predatory Journals? Here's One Reason
Anderson, R. The Source, March 3, 2020.
Growth of Predatory Publishing Shows No Sign of Slowing
Linacre, S. The Source, February 26, 2020.
Open Access Physical Therapy Journals: Do Predatory Journals Publish Lower-Quality Randomized Controlled Trials?
Bianchini, C., Consentino, C., Paci, M., Baccini, M. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, January 28, 2020.
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Bianchini, C., Consentino, C., Paci, M., & Baccini, M. (2020). Open Access Physical Therapy Journals: Do Predatory Journals Publish Lower-Quality Randomized Controlled Trials?. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2019.12.012
Predatory-journal Papers Have Little Scientific Impact
Chawla, D.S. Nature (news), January 13, 2020.
Articles in 'Predatory' Journals Receive Few or No Citations
Brainard, J. Science, January 7, 2020.
Publishing Habits and Perceptions of Open Access Publishing and Public Access Amongst Clinical and Research Fellows
O'Hanlon, R., McSweeney, J., Stabler, S. Journal of the Medical Library Association, January 1, 2020.
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O'Hanlon, R., McSweeney, J., & Stabler, S. (2020). Publishing habits and perceptions of open access publishing and public access amongst clinical and research fellows. Journal of the Medical Library Association : JMLA, 108(1), 47–58. https://doi.org/10.5195/jmla.2020.751
Predatory Journals: No Definition, No Defence
Grudniewicz, A. et. al. Nature, December 11, 2019.
Citation Contamination: References to Predatory Journals in the Legitimate Scientific Literature
Anderson, R. The Scholarly Kitchen, October 28, 2019.
Fighting Citation Pollution: The Challenge of Detecting Fraudulent Journals in Works Cited
Hinchliffe, L.J., Clarke, M. The Scholarly Kitchen, September 25, 2019
Deceptive Publishing
Anderson, R. OSI Issue Briefs, March 2019.
How I Became Easy Prey
Chambers, A.H. Science, May 10, 2019
Why Do Researchers Decide to Publish in Questionable Journals? A Review of the Literature
Frandsen, T.F. Learned Publishing, January 24, 2019
Denialism on the Rocks: It Just Got a Lot Harder to Pretend that Predatory Publishing Doesn't Matter
Anderson, R. The Scholarly Kitchen, August 7, 2018.
Dropping the Hammer: Predatory Publishers Get Pounded by Regulators and the Press
Anderson, K. The Scholarly Kitchen, July 30, 2018.
Fake Science: Face Behind Biggest of All - '40 Countries, Million Articles'
Yadav, S. The Indian Express, July 22, 2018.
More Than 5,000 German Scientists Have Published Papers in Pseudo-Scientific Journals
Lesezeit. NDR, July 19, 2018.
Inside India's Fake Research Paper Shops: Pay, Publish, Profit
Yadav, S. The Indian Express, July 19, 2018.
Use of Solicited Publishing by Academic Surgeons
Nguyen, V., Marmor, R.A., Ramamoorthy, S.L., Costantini, T.W., Baumgartner, J.M., Berumen, J. ... Sicklick, J.K. (2018). Surgery, May 1, 2018.
Predatory Publishing and Cybercrime Targeting Academics
Umlauf, M.G., Mochizuki, Y. International Journal of Nursing Practice, April 17, 2018
Put Your Email Inbox on a Low-Spam Diet
Perkel, J. Nature Jobs Blog, April 11, 2018
False Gold: Safely Navigating Open Access Publishing to Avoid Predatory Publishers and Journals
McCann, T.V., Polacsek, M. Journal of Advanced Nursing, April 2018.
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Mccann, T., & Polacsek, M. (2018). False gold: Safely navigating open access publishing to avoid predatory publishers and journals. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 74(4), 809–817. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.13483
Undercover Academic Keeping Tabs on 'Predatory' Publishing
Chawla, D.S. Nature, March 16, 2018
Persistence of Predatory Publishing
Ojala, M. Online Searcher, May/June 2018.
Paper Accepted...Unless the Letter was Forged
Cochran, A. The Scholarly Kitchen, April 18, 2018.
When Authors Get Caught in the Predatory (Illegitimate Publishing) Net
Cress, P. The Scholarly Kitchen, December 11, 2017.
Many Academics Are Eager to Publish in Worthless Journals
Kolata, G. The New York Times, October 30, 2017.
Researchers may be part of the problem in predatory publishing
Vogel, L. Canadian Medical Association. Journal, Vol. 189, Iss. 42. Oct 23, 2017.
To Catch a Predatory Publisher
Sullivan, B. SciComm (PLOS Blog), October 4, 2017.
A Confusion of Journals: What is PubMed Now?
Anderson, K. The Scholarly Kitchen, September 7, 2017.
Predatory Journals: Not Just a Problem in Developing World Countries, Says New Nature Paper
Oransky, I. Retraction Watch, September 6, 2017.
Stop This Waste of People, Animals and Money
Moher, D., Shamseer, L., Cobey, K., et all. Nature, September 6, 2017.
Publishing Too Much?; CRISPR Doubts; Phrama in Predatory Journals
Oransky, I. Retraction Watch, September 2, 2017.
Medical Journals Have a Fake News Problem
Deprez, E., Chen, C. August 29, 2017
Predatory Fraud; Risky Spreadsheets; How to Report Issues in a Paper
Oransky, I. Retraction Watch, August 12, 2017.
On Blacklists and Whitelists: Experts Debate How Best to Point Researchers to Reputable Publishers and Steer Them Away from Predatory Ones
Vence, T. The Scientist, July 17, 2017.
Multiple OMICS Journals Delisted from Major Index Over Concerns
McCook, A. Retraction Watch, March 27, 2017.
Investigations Need Sunlight: Should We Name Fraudster Names?: How to Kill Predatory Journals
Oransky, I. Retraction Watch, March 18, 2017.
Black Lists, White Lists and the Evidence: Exploring the Features of 'Predatory' Journals
Moher, D., Shamseer, L. BMC Research in Progress Blog, March 16, 2017.
Indies, Vanity, and Predators: Helping Faculty and Students Find Publishers
Burns, D. ACRLog (Association of College & Research Libraries blog), March 16, 2017.
Predatory Publishing as a Rational Response to Poorly Governed Academic Incentives
Crotty, D. The Scholarly Kitchen, February 28, 2017.
Predatory Invitations from Journals: More Than Just a Nuisance?
Clemons, M., de Costa, E.S.M., Joy, A.A., Cobey, K.D., Mazzarello, S., Stober, C., Hutton, B. Oncologist, 22(2) February 2017.
Upside of Predatory Publishers: Why No One Replicates: The Pain of Manuscript Submission
Oransky, I. Retraction Watch, February 18, 2017.
Potential Predatory and Legitimate Biomedical Journals: Can You Tell the Difference? A cross-sectional comparison
Shamseer, L., Moher, D., Maduekwe, O., Turner, L., Barbour, V., Burch, R., & ... Shea, B. J. (2017). BMC Medicine, 15(1), 28.
A Peek Inside the Strange World of Fake Academia
Carey, K. The New York Times, December 29, 2016.
Stop Predatory Publishers Now: Act Collaboratively
Moher, D., Moher, E. Annals of Internal Medicine, May 3, 2016.
'Predatory' Open Access: A Longitudinal Study of Article Volumes and Market Characteristics
Shen, C., Bjork, B. BMC Medicine, October 1, 2015.
'Predatory' Publishing Up
Straumsheim, C. Inside Higher Ed. October 1, 2015.
Deceptive Publishing: Why We Need a Blacklist, and Some Suggestions on How to Do It Right
Anderson, R. The Scholarly Kitchen, August 17, 2015.
How to Avoid Predatory Journals: A Five Point Plan
Clark, J. The BMJ Opinion, January 19, 2015
Who's Afraid of Peer Review?
Bohannon, J. Science, October 4, 2013.
Scientific Articles Accepted (Personal Checks, Too)
Kolata, G. The New York Times, April 7, 2013.
Investigating journals: The dark side of publishing
Butler, D. Nature, March 27, 2013
Sham Journals Scam Authors
Butler, D. Nature, March 27, 2013
"Predatory" Open Access Publishers: The Natural Extreme of an Author-Pays Model
Anderson, K. The Scholarly Kitchen, March 6, 2012.
'Predatory' Online Journals Lure Scholars Who Are Eager to Publish
Stratford, M. Chronicle of Higher Education, March 4, 2012.

Cabell's Predatory Reports

Cabell's Predatory Reports
Cabells' Predatory Reports is a database of deceptive and predatory journals, and a database of "verified, reputable journals", with details about those journals' acceptance rates and invited article percentages.

Assessment Tools

Journal Evaluation Tool
Rele, Shilpa; Kennedy, Marie; and Blas, Nataly, "Journal Evaluation Tool" (2017). LMU Librarian Publications & Presentations. 40.
E-Mail Assessment Tool
This is decision-making tool that empowers scholars to analyze emails from publishers, editors, and other solicitors and decide whether they are reputable or predatory.

Lopez, E., & Gaspard, C.. (2018, November 14). Email Assessment Tool (Version 1). figshare. https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.7342769.v1
Website Assessment Tool
This decision-making tool empowers scholars to come to an informed conclusion as to whether a publisher or journal is reputable or predatory based on review of its website.

Lopez, E., & Gaspard, C.. (2018, November 14). Website Assessment Tool (Version 1). figshare. https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.7342760.v1
Conference Evaluation Tool
This decision-making tool empowers scholars to come to an informed conclusion as to whether a conference opportunity is reputable or predatory.

Lopez, E., & Gaspard, C.. (2018, November 14). Conference Assessment Tool (Version 1). figshare.
https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.7342787.v1

Retraction Watch Hijacked Journals Checker
A dynamic list of hijacked journal titles. Hijacked journals mimic legitimate journals by adopting their titles, ISSNs, and other metadata without permission from the original journal.

Case Studies

Case Study #1: Invitation to Join Editorial Board
Use the assessment tools to determine if this invitation to join an editorial board is from a predatory or legitimate publisher.
Case Study #2: Invitation to Publish a Featured Paper
Use the assessment tools to determine if this invitation to publish a featured paper with a 20% discount is from a predatory or legitimate publisher.
Case Study #3: Manuscript Submission Invitation
Use to the assessment tools to determine if this manuscript submission invitation is from a predatory or legitimate publisher.
Case Study #4: Invitation to Review a Manuscript
Use the assessment tools to determine if this invitation to review a manuscript is from a predatory or legitimate journal.

Additional Resources

Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing
The Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association's principles of transparency and best practices for journals and publishers.
Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)
COPE provides advice to editors and publishers on all aspects of publication ethics and, in particular, how to handle cases of research and publication misconduct.
Retraction Watch
Retraction Watch tracks article retractions. In the process, it sometimes highlights unethical publishing practices.
InCites Journal Citation Reports
Search for a journals impact factor. (Thomson Reuters)
UlrichsWeb
Ulrichsweb is an easy to search source of detailed information on more than 300,000 periodicals. Information provided includes: ISSN, publisher, language, subject, abstracting & indexing coverage, full-text database coverage, tables of contents, and reviews written by librarians.
Google Maps
Look at the street view of a publishers address using Google Maps. Does it look like the type of office you would expect a publisher to operate from?
Sherpa/Romeo
RoMEO is a searchable database of publisher's policies regarding the self- archiving of journal articles on the web and in Open Access repositories.
Think, Check, Submit
Think. Check. Submit. is a campaign to help researchers identify trusted journals for their research. It is a simple checklist researchers can use to assess the credentials of a journal or publisher.
Cabells Scholarly Analytics
Subscription based source for journal information, evaluation metrics, and journal whitelist and blacklist.
Identifying Predatory or Pseudo-Journals (WAME)
World Association of Medical Editors (WAME) post about identifying predatory journals.
COPE Predatory Publishing Discussion Document
November 2019.