The 'hijacking' of the Scandinavian Journal of Information Systems: Implications for the information systems community

Journal hijacking, which refers to the attempted brand takeover of a journal by a third party, is a nascent threat confronting the information systems (IS) community, as evidenced by cybercriminals having established an online presence, masquerading as the Scandinavian Journal of Information Systems (SJIS). The SJIS hijacking damages the journal's reputation, leads to payment and publication scams, involves identity theft among unsuspecting IS researchers, and results in tarnished author reputations. Beyond SJIS, journal hijacking presents a threat, not only to the IS community, but also to science and academic integrity in general if researchers and readers cannot distinguish between fake publications by hijacked journals and real publications by legitimate journals. In this opinion article, we relate the story of the SJIS hijacking from the victims' perspectives. We describe its many aspects, draw attention to the key factors that contribute to the problem, and offer our perspectives on different response strategies in the absence of simple solutions. We hope to create awareness about the problem and stimulate a discussion in the IS community, not least in the face of digital innovations, such as ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence technologies that may inadvertently support paper mills and the production of fake research results.