Ethics and Malpractices

Last Updated: January 2026

Publication Ethics Statement
The DELSU Journal of Computing & Information System (DJCIS) invites authors to carefully read the ethics and malpractice statement as highlighted below. DJCIS believes strongly in maintaining journal ethics using the COPE's Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors.

COPE Member - Committee on Publication Ethics

Responsibilities of Authors

All authors who submit their research must ensure that the work is genuine and has never been submitted to any other journal for publication or previously published. Plagiarism will be strictly scrutinized by our highly efficient editorial team who strive toward the quality of the journal to meet our international standards.

Malpractices - What to Avoid

Citation Manipulation

If an author tends to increase their own citations beyond the purpose of presenting research, it leads to Citation Manipulation and may result in manuscript rejection.

Multiple/Redundant Publication

Papers describing essentially the same research should not be published in more than one journal. Submitting the same paper to multiple journals is unethical.

Data Fabrication

Manipulating research data with the intent of giving a wrong impression, including manipulating images, removing "difficult" results, or altering data points.

Data Falsification

When a researcher does the experiment but then changes some of the data to fit expectations or hypotheses.

Plagiarism

DJCIS does not permit any type of plagiarism or pre-published submissions. Authors should check article content using plagiarism detection software before submission.

Multiple Submissions

It is unethical to submit the same manuscript to more than one journal at the same time, as it wastes editors' and reviewers' time.

Redundant Publications

Publishing several manuscripts based on the same experiment reduces reader attention and dilutes the impact of your research.

Responsibilities of Reviewers

Unbiased Review

Reviewers must provide purely unbiased and polite reviews. Biasing research that could lead to over-glorification or degradation of its values is not encouraged.

Confidentiality

DJCIS considers all unpublished information about the peer-review process to be highly confidential. Reviewers must not disclose any information during or after the process.

Elaborate Review

Reviews must be detailed and clear to help authors and editors understand required changes without miscommunication.

Referenced Feedback

Reviewers should provide exact citations when suggesting changes, helping authors compare their work with cited articles for further development.

Responsibilities of Editors

Accountability

Editors are accountable and responsible for everything they publish.

Fair Decisions

Editors must make fair, unbiased decisions independent of commercial considerations and ensure a fair peer review process.

Transparency

Editors should adopt policies that encourage maximum transparency and complete, honest reporting.

Integrity

Editors should guard the integrity of the published record by issuing corrections and retractions when needed.

Misconduct Investigation

Editors should pursue reviewer and editorial misconduct and critically assess the ethical conduct of studies in humans and animals.

Expectations

Peer reviewers and authors should be clearly told what is expected of them, with appropriate policies for handling conflicts of interest.

Guidelines for Retracting Articles

DJCIS is dedicated to maintaining high standards of rigorous and rapid peer review with strict ethical policies. Infringements of ethical codes, plagiarism, fraudulent use of data, and bogus claims of authorship will be taken very seriously with zero tolerance.

Expression of Concern
When serious concerns arise about published work, an Expression of Concern may be issued to alert readers. The purpose is to correct content and inform readers, not to rebuke authors.

Retraction Process
The editor holds ultimate responsibility for decisions regarding corrections to the scholarly record, following COPE's Retraction Guidelines. If action originates from an author's request, DJCIS will process it without extra fees. If measures are taken without mutual agreement, Article Processing Charges (APC) will not be reimbursed.

Creative Commons License
By submitting a manuscript, author(s) retain rights to published material. Upon publication, they permit use of their work under a CC-BY license (creativecommons.org), allowing others to copy, distribute, transmit, adapt, and make commercial use of the work with proper attribution.