Indexjacking: can a hijacked journal appear in Scopus?

Advanced journal identity checks

Indexjacking: can a hijacked journal appear in Scopus?

Scopus coverage is an important verification signal, but it should not be used as the only identity check. Research on hijacked journals has documented cases in which counterfeit journal websites or unauthorized content became associated with legitimate source records — a problem known as indexjacking.

Maintained by the Beallslists.com editorial review team · Evidence reviewed: · Current verification cycle: 2026

What is indexjacking?

Indexjacking is the infiltration of a bibliographic database by a hijacked or cloned journal operation. The genuine journal may have a legitimate history and a real source record, while an unauthorized website imitates its name, ISSN or editorial identity.

A 2024 study in the Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology documented dozens of hijacked-journal cases affecting Scopus records, including unauthorized content and compromised homepage links. The practical lesson for authors is simple: database presence and website authenticity are related checks, but they are not the same check.

How the confusion happens

Hijackers usually borrow something real: a journal title, an ISSN, an old indexing history, or information copied from the genuine editorial board. If a researcher starts with a copied badge or a search result and then follows the wrong domain, the counterfeit site can appear convincing.

In rarer cases, unauthorized articles or links have reached indexing records. That means researchers should follow the chain of identity rather than treating one database screen as conclusive proof of who controls the journal website today.

A safer verification workflow

  1. Verify the exact source record. Match title, ISSN and coverage years in Scopus rather than searching only for individual articles.
  2. Verify the website independently. Follow links from an established publisher, scholarly society, university or another authoritative source when available.
  3. Compare archived history. A sudden domain change with no explanation deserves additional checking.
  4. Check recent articles. Confirm that articles on the journal website correspond to the indexed publication history you expect.
  5. Check more than one source. Cross-check Web of Science, Crossref metadata, the ISSN record or library catalogues where relevant.

What Scopus indexing does not prove

Scopus indexing does not by itself prove that every website using a journal's title is official. It also does not mean that coverage is current forever. Source coverage can change, and discontinued coverage requires a separate interpretation.

If your question is simply whether a journal is currently covered, use our Scopus indexing verification guide. If you are comparing two competing journal websites, use the hijacked-journal identity guide. This page is specifically about the overlap between the two problems.

Signs that deserve a second identity check

  • A Scopus-listed journal suddenly uses a different domain with no announcement from the established publisher or society.
  • The source record and website show inconsistent publisher names or countries.
  • The website publishes subject areas that are radically different from the historical journal scope.
  • The recent article volume changes dramatically without an editorial explanation.
  • The submission or payment route is hosted on an unrelated domain.

These are investigation prompts, not automatic verdicts. Legitimate journals can migrate platforms, change publishers and expand scope.

If you suspect indexjacking

Do not submit or pay until you can trace the website back to an independent authoritative source. Save the URLs and screenshots you used, because cloned sites can disappear or change quickly. If a database record appears to link to the wrong site, report the discrepancy to the database provider as well as the genuine journal or publisher.

For a broader pre-submission review, use the Journal Checker and keep identity questions separate from judgments about editorial quality.

Frequently asked questions

What is indexjacking?

Indexjacking is the infiltration or misuse of indexing-database records by a hijacked journal operation, such as unauthorized content or a counterfeit website becoming associated with a legitimate journal identity.

Can a hijacked journal appear in Scopus?

Documented research has found cases in which hijacked journal content or links affected Scopus records, so authors should verify both the source record and the official website identity.

Does Scopus indexing prove a journal website is genuine?

No. Scopus coverage supports the journal identity and indexing history, but the website domain should also be verified independently.

How do I verify a Scopus journal safely?

Match the title, ISSN, publisher and coverage years in the official source record, then confirm that the website is connected to the genuine publisher, society or institution.

Independent sources used in this guide

Journal records, publisher practices and web infrastructure can change. Verify time-sensitive claims at the original source before making a submission, funding, hiring, promotion or legal decision.