Terms of Use

1. Platform General Disclaimer & Responsibility

Global Digital Library operates as a specialized Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) and digital archival host for independent third-party journal proprietors (publishers) and conference organizers. 

Clients utilizing Global Digital Library platforms retain full editorial independence and management control. Consequently, the Clients are exclusively responsible for the implementation and enforcement of the following mandates:

  • Intellectual Property: Copyright and Open Access Policies.
  • Editorial Standards: Submission, Plagiarism, Correction, and Retraction Policies.
  • Ethics & Redress: Appeals, Complaints, and Refund Procedures.

Global Digital Library acts solely as a technological custodian and is not responsible for the scientific integrity, peer-review oversight, or ethical enforcement of hosted publications. All claims or inquiries must be directed to the respective Editors or Technical Program Committee (TPC) Chairs.


2. Entity-Specific Terms of Use

Below are the terms governing each category of user interacting with the Global Digital Library portal:


2.1. Publishers & Conference Organizers (Clients)

  • Archival Integrity: Clients warrant that they possess all necessary rights to publish the content submitted for archiving.
  • Compliance: Clients must maintain rigorous peer-review and plagiarism checks using the integrated tools.
  • Liability: Clients indemnify Global Digital Library against any third-party claims of defamation, academic misconduct, or copyright infringement.

2.2. Editors & TPC Chairs

  • Fiduciary Duty: Editors act as final authorities for content validity and must remain impartial.
  • Confidentiality: Must keep manuscript details secure and hidden from third parties during the review process.
  • Ethics Enforcement: Responsible for managing plagiarism investigations and appeals as primary points of contact.

2.3. Reviewers / TPC Members
  • Review Integrity: Must provide objective, timely, and constructive feedback.
  • Conflicts of Interest: Must decline a review if a potential bias exists regarding the author or institution.
  • Proprietary Data: Reviewers may not use research data from unpublished manuscripts for their own gain.

2.4. Institutions, Libraries & Booksellers

  • Access Rights: Provided under standard Open Access (CC BY 4.0) terms unless otherwise specified for proprietary archives.
  • Redistribution: Encouraged to link to original Global Digital Library digital objects (DOIs) rather than locally caching static copies, to ensure version-of-record integrity.

2.5. Affiliates & Partners

  • Strategic Collaboration: Affiliates must operate in accordance with GDL’s academic standards.

2.6. Authors

  • Originality: Authors certify that submissions are original, not under consideration elsewhere, and conform to publication templates.
  • Copyright: Authors agree to sign the Copyright Transfer before inclusion in the archive.
  • Transparency: Authors must disclose all conflicts of interest and funding sources.

2.7. Sponsors & Exhibitors

  • Non-Endorsement: Global Digital Library’s archival hosting of a conference does not constitute a Global Digital Library endorsement of its sponsors or their products.
  • Content Limits: Sponsor materials are limited to designated conference portals and may not interfere with scholarly research space.
  • Brand Usage: Use of the Global Digital Library logo requires written authorization from the organization’s management.


3. Expanded List of Editorial Negligence & Compliance Violations

3.1. Peer-Review Manipulation:

Global Digital Library monitors for "ghost reviewing" or "self-reviewing" patterns within the OJS logs. Clients found to be assigning reviewers with fake identities, using non-institutional emails to bypass vetting, or permitting authors to review their own work will face immediate portal suspension.

3.2. Volume Spikes:

We monitor for sudden, statistically improbable spikes in publication volume that do not align with the historical capacity of the conference or journal. This measure is intended to prevent the hosting of content produced by automated or commercially fraudulent sources.


3.3. Non-Transparent Authorship Changes:

Global Digital Library monitors for unauthorized changes to the author list after a paper has been accepted but before it is archived. Clients must document and justify any post-acceptance author changes in the OJS.


3.4. Failure to Act on Verified Plagiarism:

If Global Digital Library automated third-party tools or external whistleblowers identify high similarity scores in published material, the Client are expected to investigate. Failure to issue a correction or retraction in the face of proven plagiarism constitutes a material breach of our Terms of Use.


3.5. Conflict of Interest Non-Disclosure:

Clients must ensure that editors and reviewers disclose personal or financial ties to the authors. We monitor for patterns suggesting violations of transparent peer-review distancing.


3.6. Misleading Metadata & Indexing:

Attempting to manipulate citation counts through or misrepresentation of indexing status is grounds for permanent exclusion from the portal.


3.7. Neglect of the Correction/Retraction Record:

If a scientific error is identified, the Client is obligated to update the archival record. Leaving demonstrably incorrect or fraudulent data online without a notice damages the integrity of the Global Digital Library.


4. Enforcement Actions

When a client is found to be in violation of these ethical monitors, Global Digital Library follows a three-tier enforcement process:

  • Notice of Rectification: A formal email requesting the client to fix the breach within 14 days.
  • Platform Freeze: The portal remains online but the Client is barred from uploading new journals or proceedings.
  • De-Archiving & Termination: In cases of egregious scientific fraud, Global Digital Library will remove the hosted journal or proceedings and issue a public statement regarding the severance of the relationship.


5. Contact 

To update your marketing preferences or exercise your data rights:

  • Email: info@globaldigitallibrary.com
  • Post: Global Digital Library, International Organization for Academic Research Publishing, 5 Union Street, Manchester, M12 4JD, United Kingdom.