Privacy Statement
Journal Privacy Statement
Your privacy matters to us. This statement explains how we collect, use, and protect your personal information when you interact with our journal. Please read carefully to understand our practices regarding your data and how we safeguard it.
At our journal, we are committed to transparency in our data practices. We've designed this privacy statement to provide you with clear information about what information we gather, how we use it, with whom we share it, and what control you have over your data. We adhere to all applicable privacy regulations, including GDPR and CCPA, to ensure the highest standards of data protection.
We recognize that when you share information with us, you're placing your trust in our organization. We take this responsibility seriously and are dedicated to implementing robust security measures to protect your information from unauthorized access or disclosure. Our privacy practices are regularly reviewed and updated to maintain compliance with evolving legal requirements and industry best practices.
How We Collect Data
Our journal collects information through various channels to facilitate manuscript processing, user experience optimization, and communication with our scholarly community. Below are the primary methods through which we gather data:
Registration and Accounts
When you create an account on our platform, we collect personal information provided in registration forms, including name, email address, and professional details. This may also include your institutional affiliation, research interests, academic credentials, and ORCID identifier. Optional profile information such as biography, publication history, and research keywords may be collected to enhance networking and collaboration opportunities.
Manuscript Submission
During submission, we collect manuscript files, metadata, author information, and any supplementary materials you provide through our submission system. This includes all co-author details, funding declarations, competing interest statements, ethical approvals, data availability statements, and acknowledgments. We also record submission dates, version history, and file formats to maintain proper manuscript tracking.
Editorial Communications
Throughout the editorial process, we collect correspondence between authors, editors, and reviewers related to submissions, revisions, and publication decisions. This includes decision letters, reviewer comments, author responses, editorial notes, and any attachments shared during the review process. These communications are securely stored in our system to maintain a complete record of the peer review history and editorial decisions.
Automated Collection
We use cookies, log files, and analytics tools to automatically collect information about how you interact with our website, including navigation patterns and feature usage. This passive data collection includes IP addresses, browser types, device information, referring pages, exit pages, timestamps, and interaction events. Such information helps us optimize site performance, troubleshoot technical issues, and understand user behavior to improve our service offerings.
Surveys and Feedback
We periodically collect information through voluntary surveys, feedback forms, and direct inquiries. These may gather opinions about our publishing services, user experience, content quality, or potential new features. Participation is optional, but responses help us improve our journal operations and better meet community needs. Survey data is typically analyzed in aggregate form, though individual responses may be reviewed by our editorial team.
Professional Relationships
Information is collected when you engage with us in various professional capacities, such as becoming a reviewer, joining our editorial board, or participating in journal-sponsored events. This includes expertise information, availability for reviewing, conflict of interest declarations, and communication preferences. These details help us maintain an effective peer review system and ensure appropriate scholarly collaboration.
All data collection processes adhere to our ethical standards and applicable data protection regulations. We implement appropriate technical measures to secure the information we gather and process it only for legitimate journal operations and scholarly communication purposes.
Purpose of Data Collection
Editorial Management
To efficiently process submissions through peer review, editorial assessment, revision, and publication stages.
Communication
To facilitate necessary communication between authors, editors, reviewers, and journal staff throughout the publication process.
Identity Verification
To verify author identities, affiliations, and credentials to maintain academic integrity.
Service Improvement
To analyze usage patterns and gather feedback to enhance our platform, processes, and user experience.
We regularly review and update our privacy statement to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, and user feedback. Minor updates may include clarifications or corrections, while significant changes might affect how we use or share your information.
For significant changes, we will provide prominent notice through our website, email notifications to registered users, and/or announcements in our newsletter. The notification level (1-5) indicates the prominence of our communications, with 5 representing our most visible notifications for major policy revisions.
We encourage you to periodically review this statement to stay informed about how we protect your information. The effective date at the bottom of this policy indicates when it was last updated.
