Revistas depredadoras: fraude en la ciencia

Academic publications are moving from a pay-per-read model to a pay-per-publication model. These journals are free to read, but they charge upfront publication fees to the author (APCs). Although many of the open access journals are legal and reputable, there is a thriving black market economy of open access journals that take advantage of authors and the increasing pressure to publish that is being exerted on the academic community. These are so-called predatory journals that mask existing publications for the sole purpose of financial gain. This article analyses the phenomenon, the forms it takes, the agents, the consequences and the pollution on the scientific communication system