How to spot a predatory journal before you submit

Warning signs

• Unsolicited emails praising your work and inviting a submission, often outside your field.
• Acceptance promised within days, or "publication guaranteed".
• Fees not stated until after acceptance.
• Invented metrics with impressive names instead of recognised ones.
• Very broad scope, such as pharmacy, engineering and management in one journal.
• Editorial board members who cannot be traced, or who do not know they are listed.
• Poor-quality published articles, with obvious errors that peer review would have caught.

How to verify a journal in 10 minutes

1. Check indexing at the source. Search the journal title and ISSN in the Scopus sources list, the Web of Science Master Journal List, or DOAJ for open-access journals. Do not rely on logos on the journal's own site.
2. Match the web address. Hijacked journals copy the name of a real journal on a different website. Open the journal link from the index record, not from an email.
3. Check your institution's rules. Universities and funders may have their own list of approved journals or indexing requirements.
4. Read the peer-review policy and look at recent articles in your area.
5. Confirm the fees in writing before submitting.
6. Use the Think. Check. Submit. checklist if you are still unsure.

If you have already submitted

Write to the journal and withdraw the manuscript before publication. Keep a copy of your email. Once an article appears in a predatory journal it is hard to remove and cannot usually be republished elsewhere.