"Scientific article" published in fake magazine, rewarded with real money

But it is worth mentioning that these journals have now been removed from Scopus (a database of articles from prestigious journals).

In addition, these magazines are also on the list of fake magazine warnings.

Rewarded from 60 - 80 million VND/article

In 2020, the topic "Factors affecting the effectiveness of implementing the new rural program in suburban districts in Ho Chi Minh City" chaired by Ms. Bui Hong Trang was funded by the Center for Youth Science and Technology Development (Ho Chi Minh City Youth Union) with a budget of 90 million VND (according to the "Incubator Program"). From this topic, the two authors Bui Hong Trang and Phan Thi Hang Nga wrote an article published in Multicultural Education magazine in 2021, and were then awarded 60 million VND by the school.

In June 2020, the article by the group of authors Nguyen Thi My Linh, Phan Thi Hang Nga (and two other authors) was published in the Journal of Security and Sustainability Issues. "At the time of publication of volume 9-2020, this journal was still in the Scopus index. Although this is a Q2-ranked journal, volume 10.2020 was removed from the Scopus index not long after.

The strange thing is that the same article has two versions with different authors on two different websites. The second version has the name of the author Đ.TNH (the international article dealer) added," said a lecturer at the University of Finance and Marketing.

The article by the group of authors Phan Thi Hang Nga, Le Trung Dao, Hoang Thai Hung and Le Thi Thuy Hang was accused of being published in the fake journal Academy of Strategic Management Journal (which has been removed from the Scopus index). After that, the group of authors was rewarded 60 million VND/article by the school.

Similarly, two articles by the group of authors Phan Thi Hang Nga and Pham Tien Dat were published in the journal Hunan Daxue Xuebao/Journal of Hunan University Natural Sciences. "This journal is ranked Q2, but in fact it is a fake journal. The group of authors was awarded 80 million VND/article by the school," said a lecturer.

"The authors have no legal basis from the authorities to identify the journal as fake. At the time of considering support for the authors, those journals were all in the Scopus directory" - Ms. Phan Thi Hang Nga (in charge of the science management department of the University of Finance - Marketing) said.

All are fake magazines

Tuoi Tre contacted a number of scientists in Vietnam and the US. These scientists stated: "All of the articles by the accused authors were published in journals that have been warned of impersonation, forgery, or have been removed from the Scopus index."

Specifically: 1. Multicultural Education (http://ijdri.com) is a fake journal on the Retraction Watch warning list (line 100). This journal has been warned by the Scientific Integrity group and Tuoi Tre has also reported on the Retraction Watch fake journal warning list.

2. Journal of Security and Sustainability Issues - this journal has been removed from Scopus since 2020 due to concerns about irregular publishing behavior.

3. Academy of Strategic Management Journal - this journal has been removed from Scopus since 2021, also due to irregular publishing behavior. This journal is published by predatory publisher Allied Business Academies.

4. Hunan Daxue Xuebao/Journal of Hunan University Natural Sciences (https://jonuns.com) is a fake journal that was warned by Indonesia's Universitas Diponegoro (UNDIP).

Dr. Duong Tu (Purdue University, USA) said: "Fake journals always try to fake original journals listed in Scopus or ISI to trick researchers into posting articles for money. Just looking up the journal name in the Scopus or ISI list is not enough to determine whether a journal is a fake or not."

Mr. Tran Duc Su - Deputy Director of the Center for Youth Science and Technology Development - confirmed that in December 2020, this unit signed a contract with Ms. Bui Hong Trang, supporting 90 million VND to carry out the above topic. The author submitted the research results on time according to the contract. "If the article was published before Nafosted changed the list, it would still be considered a product that meets the program's criteria," said Mr. Su.

According to Mr. Le Trung Dao - Vice Principal of the University of Finance and Marketing, the school implements a policy to encourage scientific and technological activities with regulations issued in each period. Before 2021, the school only supports articles published in international journals with ISSN codes, listed in the Scopus/ISI list.

From January 2021, the school will adjust the support for international publications, not support articles on the Beall lists and continuously update related regulations. "The school implements transparency in accordance with the regulations at each stage of the school's development," Mr. Dao affirmed.

I don't know why one post is in two places.

Regarding the article appearing on two different websites, Ms. Nguyen Thi My Linh affirmed: "We only submitted this article once, in the Journal of Security and Sustainability Issues. On the main website of this journal, our article was published, the group of authors consisted of four people: Nguyen Thi My Linh, Phan Thi Hang Nga, Bui Ngoc Toan, Tran Xuan Hang.

The article is a collective product of four authors, from a ministerial-level scientific research topic. From mid-2019 to mid-2020, I contacted Mr. D.TNH many times by email because at this time Mr. H. asked me to guide him in his research at the Banking University of Ho Chi Minh City.

During the working process, I found that Mr. H.'s research direction was not suitable, so I submitted a request to stop supervising this PhD student and it was approved. I did not know and did not allow Mr. H. to attach his name to my article."

According to Tuoi Tre