By Debra Zynger, M.D., Associate
Professor, The Ohio State University Department of Pathology and
Editor-in-Chief, PathologyOutlines.com and Nat Pernick, M.D., President,
PathologyOutlines.com
Congratulations! You have been invited to submit your publication to a journal, speak at a conference, join a conference organizing committee or be on an Editorial Board. How can you tell if it is legitimate or just an attempt to deceptively take your money?
Here are some tips to spot a scam:
Journal article or editorial board
invitation:
The journal:
* is on this list of predatory journals
* is unknown to you or your
colleagues
* has no editors listed on its website
or many editors but includes a random mix of medical specialties and
degrees, few of which you recognize
* has no stated qualifications for
editorial board members other than providing a CV and a photo
* sent you an invitation with poor English
grammar
The publishing company:
* has no apparent physical address
* has numerous very new
online only journals across many different medical specialties
* has only journals which charge a
fee to publish and are not indexed in PubMed
Conference speaker or organizing committee invitation:
The conference:
* is unknown to you or your
colleagues
* is only advertised via email
(i.e. there is no paid advertising for the conference)
* has no agenda or it is vague or unavailable
unless you provide an email
* has platforms / seminars which are
unrelated to each other
* includes a group photo
* has a website listing numerous
other conferences across a large number of medical specialties and non-medical
fields
* has a website with poor English
grammar
The speaker invitation:
* is surprising because the meeting
topic is outside your area of expertise or your role is inappropriate for your
current qualifications (e.g. keynote speaker, organizing committee)
* indicates that speaker spots are
still available
* is offered 6 months or less from the
date of the conference
* allows any topic of your interest
to be presented and no stated qualifications
* does not indicate that you will be
provided meeting registration, travel expenses, lodging or an honorarium (almost
all legitimate speaking engagements at conferences provide travel
assistance, lodging, meeting registration or an honorarium)
* has poor English grammar
* Note that even if you decline, some conferences will list your name as a speaker to attract other speakers
References:
* Kolata, G: Many Academics Are Eager to Publish in Worthless Journals. New York Times, 30 October 2017
* Webinar: How
to Spot a Predatory Publisher (YouTube)
* Wikipedia:
Predatory conference
* Pai M and Franco E: Predatory
Conferences Undermine Science And Scam Academics. Huffington Post, 13
October 2016
