Online Module of Research Integrity (RI)

A former colleague once proudly shared that their paper had been accepted in an international conference with a quick turnaround and minimal review. Curious, I looked up the conference and found it listed as predatory—charging high fees, offering little to no peer review, and publishing without academic merit. I gently informed them about the nature of predatory journals and conferences, showing credible sources that explained the risks, including damage to their academic reputation. At first, they were defensive, but after some reflection, they admitted they hadn’t thoroughly checked the conference’s legitimacy. Although it wasn’t officially reported, the incident sparked an important discussion in our department about research ethics. Our supervisor later organized a seminar on how to identify and avoid predatory publications. The experience served as a wake-up call, reminding us all to be vigilant and responsible in choosing where to present and publish our work.