Anti-Abuse Policy

Jurnal KEPO is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and credibility in scholarly publishing. The journal adopts a zero-tolerance policy toward any form of publication abuse, data manipulation, or unethical practice that may compromise the editorial process, peer review, publication quality, or the scientific record.

This policy applies to all participants in the publishing process, including authors, reviewers, editors, editorial board members, and the publisher. All suspected violations will be investigated fairly, objectively, and confidentially in accordance with internationally recognized publication ethics standards, including the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices.

A. Scope of the Policy

This Anti-Abuse Policy is designed to prevent, detect, and address any intentional misuse of the journal's editorial and publishing systems, including unethical conduct occurring before, during, or after publication.

B. Prohibited Practices

Jurnal KEPO strictly prohibits all forms of publication misconduct, including but not limited to:

1. Plagiarism

Submitting manuscripts that contain copied text, ideas, images, tables, or data without appropriate attribution or citation. This includes self-plagiarism, text recycling, and duplicate publication.

2. Data Fabrication and Falsification

Creating, altering, manipulating, or selectively reporting research data, figures, images, or clinical/experimental results to misrepresent the actual findings.

3. Duplicate and Simultaneous Submission

Submitting the same or substantially similar manuscript to multiple journals concurrently, or publishing the same research findings in more than one outlet without explicit editorial approval and proper disclosure.

4. Paper Mill Submissions

Submitting manuscripts produced, brokered, or sold by third-party organizations (paper mills). Jurnal KEPO reserves the right to reject or retract any manuscript suspected of originating from commercial writing services or fake research providers.

5. Authorship Abuse

The journal strictly forbids:

  • Guest authorship: Including individuals who made no significant contribution.

  • Gift / Honorary authorship: Adding names out of respect or personal obligation.

  • Ghost authorship: Omitting individuals who made substantial contributions.

  • Purchased authorship: Buying or selling authorship slots.

All listed authors must meet standard authorship criteria by making substantial scholarly and intellectual contributions to the study.

6. Peer Review Manipulation

Any attempt to subvert or influence the peer-review process is strictly prohibited. This includes:

  • Providing fake or misleading reviewer identities.

  • Creating fabricated reviewer email addresses.

  • Impersonating reviewers.

  • Improperly communicating with or attempting to influence reviewers.

7. Citation Manipulation

Practices aimed at artificially inflating citation metrics are forbidden, including:

  • Excessive self-citation.

  • Coercive citation (demanding authors cite specific papers without academic justification).

  • Citation cartels or collusive citation networks.

8. Identity Fraud and Misrepresentation

Authors, reviewers, and editors must provide accurate, verifiable information regarding their identity, institutional affiliation, ORCID iD, professional email addresses, and funding sources.

9. Artificial Intelligence (AI) Misuse

While AI tools may assist in language editing or formatting, the following rules apply:

  • AI tools and Large Language Models (LLMs) cannot be listed as authors.

  • Authors remain fully accountable for the accuracy, integrity, and originality of their work.

  • AI-generated data, images, citations, or synthetic findings are strictly prohibited.

  • Transparent disclosure of AI tool usage must be provided in the manuscript.

10. Abuse of Editorial Communication

Jurnal KEPO will not tolerate any form of harassment, intimidation, abusive language, threats, coercion, or inappropriate pressure directed toward editors, reviewers, or editorial staff.

11. System and Security Abuse

Unauthorized activities involving the Open Journal Systems (OJS) platform, such as hacking attempts, account compromise, automated spam submissions, or malicious software distribution, are strictly forbidden and may be reported to relevant authorities.

12. Concealment of Conflicts of Interest

Failure to declare financial, institutional, clinical, personal, or professional conflicts of interest that could bias the research or publication process constitutes serious misconduct.

C. Detection and Assessment

Jurnal KEPO employs rigorous screening mechanisms to identify potential publication abuse, including:

  • Similarity and plagiarism detection software (e.g., Turnitin).

  • Editorial screening and peer-review evaluations.

  • Image and data integrity checks.

  • Reference and citation analysis.

  • Post-publication whistleblowing reports and reader feedback.

D. Investigation Procedure

When potential misconduct or abuse is identified, the journal follows structured investigation procedures aligned with COPE guidelines:

  1. Initial Editorial Review: Assessment of evidence by the Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board.

  2. Inquiry: Contacting the author(s) or reviewer(s) to request written explanations and supporting documentation.

  3. External Consultation: Seeking guidance from independent ethics experts or institutional authorities when required.

  4. Fair Hearing: Ensuring all parties are given a reasonable opportunity to respond before decisions are finalized.

E. Corrective Actions and Sanctions

Depending on the severity and nature of the violation, Jurnal KEPO may take one or more of the following actions:

  • Issuing a formal request for manuscript revision or clarification.

  • Immediate rejection of the manuscript.

  • Suspension of the peer-review process.

  • Publication of a formal Correction, Expression of Concern, or Retraction.

  • Banning the author(s) or reviewer(s) from submitting to or working with Jurnal KEPO for a specified period or permanently.

  • Reporting the misconduct to the authors' home institution, funding bodies, or relevant professional boards.

F. Confidentiality

All inquiries and investigations regarding alleged publication misconduct are conducted with strict confidentiality. Information is shared solely with individuals directly involved in the investigation or where disclosure is required by law or institutional regulations.

G. Appeals Process

Authors who wish to appeal an editorial decision resulting from an ethics investigation may submit a formal written appeal supported by new evidence to the Editor-in-Chief. The appeal will be reviewed independently, and the final decision rendered after appeal review shall be definitive.

H. Commitment to Research Integrity

Jurnal KEPO remains dedicated to fostering ethical nursing research and transparent publishing practices through continuous editorial oversight, reviewer training, and adherence to international publication ethics standards.