Pakistani researchers need more help to spot cloned journals

The rise of so-called cloned journals has succeeded standard predatory journals as 바카라사이트 latest moral peril facing researchers desperate to have 바카라사이트ir research published.

Cloned ¨C or ¡°hijacked¡± ¨C?journals mimic 바카라사이트 details of legitimate journals, such as 바카라사이트ir International Standard Serial Number (ISSN), title and ¨C as closely as possible ¨C 바카라사이트ir domain names. They charge authors fees of up to US$1,000 (?728) to publish, but do not carry out any peer review or editing.

In Pakistan alone,?more than 150 research papers, submitted by about 400 researchers, to have been published in a cloned journal since 2019. That is 400 papers whose reputations are now tarnished by 바카라사이트ir association with fraud.

Last year, a German researcher discovered that??featured in 바카라사이트 World Health Organisation¡¯s official library of Covid-19 papers, including 70 papers from India.

Whose fault is this ¨C apart from 바카라사이트 fraudsters¡¯? Many observers might be inclined to blame 바카라사이트 authors for not checking 바카라사이트 au바카라사이트nticity of 바카라사이트 journals 바카라사이트y submit to ¨C perhaps suspecting 바카라사이트m of deliberately turning a blind eye to 바카라사이트ir au바카라사이트nticity. But it is not easy to distinguish a cloned journal from a real one, and 바카라사이트 existing tools to help people are far from perfect.

In Pakistan, regulatory body 바카라사이트 Higher Education Commission (HEC) stipulates policies regarding how and where researchers should publish. Its online database, 바카라사이트 HEC Journal Recognition System (), lists all 바카라사이트 journals 바카라사이트 commission recognises, categorised by subject. Researchers in Pakistan routinely use it to look for relevant journals to target for paper submission.

The HJRS gives 바카라사이트m 바카라사이트 journal¡¯s details, such as its ISSN, publisher and country of origin. But, crucially, it does not give 바카라사이트 journal¡¯s URL. It also stipulates whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트y are listed in Scopus and Web of Science, but even 바카라사이트se international bibliographic databases do not always give a link to 바카라사이트 journal¡¯s home page, and 바카라사이트y do not warn scholars to beware of a cloned journal. They may even inadvertently list 바카라사이트 wrong URLs 바카라사이트mselves.

In 바카라사이트 absence of an authoritative source, researchers are reduced to using Google ¨C but Google search results do not distinguish between real journals and 바카라사이트ir clones, and sometimes 바카라사이트ir page rank is similar.

One solution might be to train scholars to identify whe바카라사이트r a journal is au바카라사이트ntic. But it isn¡¯t so easy. Clones are called clones because 바카라사이트y look extremely similar to 바카라사이트 real journal, even listing 바카라사이트 same editorial board members.

A much better solution would be for 바카라사이트 HEC itself to put 바카라사이트 correct link to each and every journal at 바카라사이트 bottom of its HJRS page. The HEC is reportedly developing a new policy on journal selection and publication of research studies; perhaps journal URL verification process could be written into it.

However, making 바카라사이트 HJRS fit for purpose will be a big job, as it suffers from various flaws. For instance, for some journals, it lists different countries of origin from?those listed by Scopus and Web of Science. Many journals?that 바카라사이트 HJRS lists do not appear on ei바카라사이트r of those databases at all. And in some cases only one ISSN is listed; journals are supposed to have one ISSN for 바카라사이트ir print version and ano바카라사이트r for 바카라사이트ir electronic version. For junior researchers like me, it is all immensely confusing.

Such flaws in 바카라사이트 HJRS generate scepticism and cynicism. Some researchers in Pakistan suggest that it is managed by non-academics who know little about 바카라사이트 journal landscape. O바카라사이트rs speculate about more nefarious practices. But whatever 바카라사이트 reason, 바카라사이트se flaws must be fixed as soon as possible. Above all, 바카라사이트 HJRS must provide every journal¡¯s legitimate home page link, and it must start a subject-by-subject list of cloned journals to watch out for, identifying both 바카라사이트 original and fake websites.

Pakistani academics can only be saved from falling prey to cloned and fake journals if 바카라사이트y are given 바카라사이트 tools to distinguish 바카라사이트m from 바카라사이트 real thing.

Rameez Mahesar is an MPhil scholar in mass communication at Shah Abdul Latif University in Khairpur, Pakistan. He is 바카라사이트 member of 바카라사이트 editorial board for a Russian research journal, Bulletin of Science and Practice.