Predatory publishing definition (international consensus group):
“Predatory journals and publishers are entities that prioritize self-interest at the expense of scholarship and are characterized by false or misleading information, deviation from best editorial and publication practices, a lack of transparency, and/or the use of aggressive and indiscriminate solicitation practices.” Grudniewicz et al., Nature 576, 210-212 (2019)
Some unethical practices by predatory publishers include adding researcher's names to articles or editorial boards without their knowledge, advertising fake impact factors on their websites, or claiming to provide peer review but it doesn't happen.
We hope to help you to avoid these publishers by increasing awareness and providing some tools for evaluation. Unfortunately, It is nearly impossible to avoid them completely due to their prevalence.
Unfortunately, there are predatory conferences too! Some of the red flags are similar to those of predatory journals: email addresses that don't match where the sender says they are from, spelling errors in emails and websites, fake conference speakers, etc. Just like evaluating any other online resources, read laterally--get off their website and independently search for the authors, speakers, and conference sponsors! Below are some strategies to identify them and some more information to help inform your decision to attend:
