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Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

Stringent adherence to the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices.

1. Guiding Principles and COPE Compliance

ISASTE is unyieldingly committed to maintaining the highest standard of publication ethics. We recognize that the integrity of the scientific record is the foundation of academic progress. Therefore, we take comprehensive, proactive measures to prevent any publication malpractices. All parties involved in the publishing lifecycle under ISASTE's technical sponsorship—including Authors, Peer Reviewers, Conference Organizers, and the Editorial Board—are strictly mandated to adhere to the Core Practices established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

2. Duties and Responsibilities of Authors

  • Originality and Plagiarism: Authors must guarantee that they have authored entirely original works. Any incorporation of the work, code, or exact phrasing of others must be appropriately cited. ISASTE enforces a strict zero-tolerance policy regarding plagiarism. All submitted manuscripts are mandatorily screened using professional anti-plagiarism software (e.g., iThenticate, Crossref Similarity Check). Manuscripts exceeding the strict 20% similarity index threshold (or containing significant localized copying) will face immediate desk-rejection.
  • Multiple, Redundant, or Concurrent Publication: Submitting the same manuscript to multiple venues (journals or conferences) concurrently constitutes severe unethical publishing behavior. Authors must not submit for consideration a manuscript that has already been published elsewhere.
  • Authorship Integrity: Authorship must be limited exclusively to individuals who have made a significant intellectual contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study. Ghost authorship (omitting key contributors) and Gift/Guest authorship (including individuals who did not meaningfully contribute) are strictly prohibited. The corresponding author bears the legal responsibility of ensuring that all co-authors have reviewed and approved the final version of the manuscript.
  • Disclosure of Financial Conflicts: All authors must explicitly disclose any financial grants, corporate affiliations, or other substantive conflicts of interest that might be construed to influence the objective results or interpretation of their manuscript.

3. Duties and Responsibilities of Reviewers

  • Confidentiality: Any manuscripts received for review are legally considered highly confidential documents. They must not be retained, shared, or discussed with unauthorized third parties under any circumstances.
  • Standards of Objectivity: Reviews must be conducted with absolute objectivity. Personal criticism of the author is entirely inappropriate. Referees should express their evaluations clearly, supported by scientific arguments and relevant citations to guide the authors in improving their manuscript.
  • Promptness and Competence: Any selected referee who feels underqualified to assess the technical methodology of a manuscript, or anticipates that a timely review is impossible, is obligated to notify the Technical Committee immediately and excuse themselves from the assignment.
  • Conflict of Interest Avoidance: Reviewers must not consider manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.

4. Duties of Conference Chairs and Organizers

Conference Chairs and Technical Program Committee (TPC) members acting under ISASTE's sponsorship bear the ultimate responsibility for deciding which of the articles submitted to the conference should be published. These decisions must be driven exclusively by the scientific validity, academic merit, and relevance of the work, without regard to the race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political philosophy of the authors.

5. Post-Publication Corrections and Retractions

In the rare event that a published paper is found to contain severe methodological flaws, plagiarized content, or fabricated data post-publication, ISASTE is duty-bound to preserve the integrity of the academic record.

If an error is localized and does not invalidate the core conclusion of the study, an official Erratum or Corrigendum will be published and linked to the original document. However, if the fundamental findings are compromised due to scientific misconduct, data falsification, or honest but catastrophic error, ISASTE will promptly execute a formal Retraction process. A retraction notice, explicitly detailing the reasons for the retraction, will be permanently appended to the digital record to alert the global academic community.