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Staying safe online during Peer Review

Staying safe online is becoming more and more important with the ever-growing cyber threats that we face on a daily basis. IOP Publishing is committed to helping our users stay safe online during the peer review process and we feel that the internet doesn’t have to be a scary place as long as you take the right precautions.

To help you stay safe during peer review we have compiled 4 security tips to keep in mind, whether you are an author, reviewer, or editor.

Communicate safely with IOP Publishing and our journal teams

  • Add the journal email address to your safe-senders list. This is the only email account that will contact you about your submission. You can find the journal email address here.
  • You will never be asked to make a payment for open access or article charges outside of our official payment system. If you get a request to share payment details or make a payment that seems suspicious, let the journal team know as soon as possible at the journal email address.

Keep your journal site passwords safe and secure

  • Make sure you use a strong and unique password for your IOPP journal account on ScholarOne that cannot be easily guessed.
  • Change your password if you suspect any behaviour that is out of the ordinary. It is also good practice to change your password at least once a year.
  • Never share your password. If you are submitting a review on-behalf of a colleague you should also get credit for this. See IOP Publishing’s co-review policy for more information.

Be wary when using your devices in public

  • Be careful of using ScholarOne Peer Review software in public places (e.g. in libraries and laboratories) and always make sure you log out completely when you have finished your session on a public computer.
  • When using public Wi-Fi make sure to sign out of the journal sites as soon as you have finished. Also think about changing your device settings so that it doesn’t automatically connect to the nearest public Wi-Fi.

Report it!

  • If you see something suspicious in the submission system (ScholarOne), in a message from the journal team, or something else that relates to your submission or reviews, let the journal team know immediately at the journal email address.
  • Don’t worry if you think it is too late, we will do our best to help you resolve the issue.

If you need more guidance about peer review security or you believe you might have been affected by a security incident, please contact the journal you are reviewing for at the journal email address.