Abstract

Background. Scientific communication is seriously compromised and the quality of published articles is threatened when scientists and authors submit and publish their manuscripts in predatory journals. Predatory publishing can harm scientific practise and undermine scientific integrity, quality and credibility, especially when predatory journals penetrate reputable databases. Objective: To highlight the problem of predatory publishing and the means and approaches to prevent it and help authors avoid publishing in such journals. Methods: To explore Beall and Cabell’s lists of predatory publishers and journals and review the relevant published literature, as well as the author’s personal experience and observations. Results: There is no single, universally accepted definition of predatory publishers and fraudulent journals in the literature, nor is there an effective strategy for preventing, controlling, and solving the problem of predatory publishing. Jeffrey Beall, a librarian and library scientist from Denver, Colorado, attracted attention in 2010 and initiated a broad discussion in the scientific community about predatory open access (OA) publishing. He created and maintained the widely known Beall’s Lists, which in 2017-18 were transformed into the Cabell’s Black Lists of potentially predatory publishers and predatory OA journals. The threats and consequences of counterfeit journals are numerous and multi-faceted. The debate on predatory publishing continues in the scientific community, and the number of authors and published articles on this burning and unresolved issue is increasing. Conclusion: Predatory publishing and fake journals pose a global threat to the scientific community as they deviate from best editorial and publishing practices. Raising awareness among the scientific community and continuously educating authors about predatory publishers and journals, as well as avoiding predatory journals, remains central to the strategy for addressing the problem of predatory publishing. In addition to academic institutions and researchers in scientific societies, an active contribution to combating predatory publishing is needed from publishing associations, research funders, policy makers, libraries and other interested parties and stakeholders at local, national and international levels.

Key words: predatory publishing, Beall lists, fraudulent, hijacked journals, Gold Open Access, pseudoscience.