Cloned & Fake Journal Alert: Protect Your Paper

Why It Matters: A Wrong Journal Choice Can Invalidate Your Research

Choosing the wrong journal does more than waste your time and effort; it can make your research worthless for academic credit altogether. The UGC-CARE List is revised continually to drop journals that fall short of ethical and quality standards, and some journals are deliberately cloned, meaning fraudulent copies that imitate the name, ISSN and website of a genuine, reputable publication. Take a few minutes to verify any unfamiliar journal before you submit.

Here you will learn why journals are delisted, how to spot a clone, which official resources to verify with and, since cloning goes beyond UGC-CARE, how identical scams are aimed at titles indexed in Scopus and Web of Science.

Reasons Journals Are Removed or Delisted

Reasons for which the UGC-CARE Committee discontinues journals include:

• Content of low quality or plagiarized material
• A peer review process that is not transparent
• Deceptive indexing claims or fake metrics
• Online clones of journals that exist only in print
• Breaches of publication ethics

How to Spot a Cloned or Fake Journal

Clones frequently imitate genuine journals by reproducing their name and layout while running on an entirely different domain. Verify through the official databases themselves, and never rely only on a badge or claim displayed on the journal's own website. Bookmark the official databases so you can reach them without following links in emails.

Official Lists of Cloned Journals

UGC-CARE keeps separate lists of cloned journals, compiled with the help of the UGC Cell for Journal Analysis and the Centre for Publication Ethics (CPE) based at Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU):

List	Purpose
Group I Cloned Journals	Fake copies of journals on the Group I list, posted on the official UGC-CARE portal
Group II Cloned Journals	Fake copies of journals on the Group II list (those indexed internationally)

As soon as a journal is confirmed to engage in unethical practices such as cloning, it is taken off the UGC group.

What Follows From Publishing in a Cloned or Removed Journal

• Worth nothing as academic credit of any sort
• Not eligible for use in Ph.D. submission or research grants
• Damages your academic and professional reputation when it comes to light
• Possible rejection by later publishers or institutions that notice the link

Cloning Goes Beyond UGC-CARE — Scopus & WoS Are Cloned Too

UGC-CARE listed journals are cloned, yet titles indexed in Scopus and Web of Science are targeted just as often. Fake journals exploit the standing of real indexed publications to lure researchers, and the results are the same: academic disqualification, rejection for thesis or grant use, and wasted money and time.

Red Flags Unique to Fake Scopus/WoS Journals

• Borrows a name, ISSN or logo close to a real journal's yet runs on another domain
• States it is "Scopus Indexed" or "Web of Science Indexed" but gives no Source ID or link that can be verified
• Shows Scopus/WoS logos that do not link to the official database record
• Does not disclose an editorial board that can be verified
• Emails uninvited, spam-like offers of fast-track acceptance

Checking Scopus & WoS Indexing on Your Own, Step by Step

For Scopus:

1. Go to scopus.com/sources.
2. Look it up using the exact journal title or its ISSN.
3. Compare each detail, namely title, ISSN and publisher, with the official source entry.
4. Look at the "Coverage years" status to be sure the journal is indexed at present.

For Web of Science:

1. Open mjl.clarivate.com, the Clarivate Master Journal List.
2. Use the journal title or ISSN to search.
3. Make sure it appears under SCIE, SSCI, AHCI, or ESCI.
4. Check that the publisher name and domain listed agree with the journal you are thinking of.

A Practical Illustration of Cloning at Work

In a typical cloning case, a fraudulent site reproduces a genuine journal's name, ISSN and look almost exactly, altering just the URL. It then claims Scopus or Web of Science indexing with no valid Source ID, promises unusually fast publication, and presses authors for a large fee before any real review happens. By the time the author notices the mismatch, often only when their institution rejects the paper during evaluation, the fee can rarely be recovered.

Staying Safe: A Handy Checklist

• Verify indexing only on official portals (UGC-CARE, Scopus, Clarivate MJL), and never rely on third-party aggregators or the journal's own statements by themselves.
• Make sure the journal's domain is exactly the one shown in the official database.
• Look for an editorial board, a peer review process and contact details that are stated openly and can be checked.
• If a particular journal worries you, consult your supervisor, department or research cell.
• Treat with suspicion every offer of guaranteed, fast-track or review-free acceptance.
• Do not pay anything until you have separately confirmed the journal's present listing status.

How JMVRA Can Be Verified Easily

A journal that makes independent checking straightforward is the strongest protection against cloning confusion. JMVRA openly provides the details that a genuine journal ought to:

Detail	Where to Check
ISSN 2984-8911	Confirm on the official ISSN Portal
The official domain is jmvra.org	Before submitting, make sure any link uses precisely this domain
Editorial board	Listed publicly on the JMVRA website together with institutional affiliations
Peer review policy	Read JMVRA's Transparent Peer Review Policy
Status under the UGC-CARE framework	Read JMVRA's UGC CARE Approval page
Contact	[email protected] · +91 91063 65667

At-a-Glance Checklist

1. Address entered manuallyNever through an email link
2. ISSN verifiedAgainst the ISSN Portal record
3. Claims confirmedIn the database itself
4. Unsolicited emails disregardedPass them to [email protected]
5. Pay only through the official siteOnce accepted

Everyday Habits That Protect You From Cloned Journals

Cloned journals depend on authors acting quickly and trusting what they see. Building a few steady habits into your routine makes it much harder for an imitation site to catch you out.

• Type the address yourself. Do not follow links in unsolicited emails. Search for the journal independently and reach it through an address you have confirmed from an independent source.
• Compare the site with older records. Look at how the journal described itself in earlier years through reputable listings and archives. Sudden changes in editors, address or publisher are worth questioning.
• Contact the named editors independently. Find the editor's institutional page through their university and write to the address there. Genuine editors can confirm whether they serve the journal.
• Watch for unusual payment requests. Be wary of payment to personal accounts, urgent deadlines or fee demands before any review. Legitimate publishers explain charges clearly and use identifiable business channels.
• Share warnings with colleagues. If you find a suspicious site, tell your library and department. Collective awareness protects junior researchers who have fewer people to ask.

Reach journals through addresses you have verified yourself, confirm editors independently, and tell your institution when something looks wrong.

Questions Researchers Often Ask