New OA Publisher Launches with 107 Journals, Fakes Association with Elsevier

Sprinting to nowhere.

We recently learned about a new open-access publisher called Sprint Journals. The publisher has launched with 107 new, scholarly open-access journals — or more precisely — it is in the process of launching, for the website is incomplete, with mostly dead links.

We heard about this new publisher from a poorly-written spam email  a researcher received and forwarded. Note that in the “From” line the text “Elsevier/Sprint Journals Publisher” appears. The publisher is pretending to be associated with Elsevier:

Faking an association with Elsevier.

The spam email confuses the singular and the plural and uses flowery language to describe the publisher’s mission.

The SPRINT JOURNALS is a multidisciplinary peer-reviewed journal that will be published monthly by SPRINT JOURNALS, http://www.sprintjournals.com). SJ is dedicated to increasing the depth of the subject across disciplines with the ultimate aim of expanding knowledge of the subject.

A copy of the full email is here. It is signed by Rex Hammond, a name I think is made up.

We also noticed other attempts to link Sprint Journals with Elsevier, chiefly through images. For example, the following image appears as one of a series of rotating images on the site:

Is there a vaccine for predatory publishers?

The image contains the Elsevier logo. I don’t think Sprint Journals has any legitimate connection with Elsevier.

More subterfuge.

This rotating image also appears on the site at this time, but I don’t see a journal with this title among the publisher’s fleet of journals.

Most of the links to the publisher’s 107 journals are dead. However, nine of them are live and include published articles in them. The publisher does not state its location. However, most of the articles’ authors are from Nigeria, so if I had to guess the location of this publisher, it would be there.

As I mentioned, among the 107 journals, only nine currently have active hyperlinks to their own web pages. This means that much spamming remains to be carried out when the remaining journal pages are created. Watch your inbox for deceptive spam emails from Sprint Journals.

Appendix: Sprint Journals as of 2014-08-21

1. Sprint Journal of Accounting and Taxation (SPRJAT)
2. Sprint Journal of Agricultural Biotechnology and Sustainable Development (SPRJABSD)
3. Sprint Journal of Agricultural Extension and Rural Development (SPRJAERD)
4. Sprint Journal of Agricultural Research (SPRJAR)
5. Sprint Journal of Agricultural SCIENCE (SPRJAS)
6. Sprint Journal of AIDS and HIV Research (SPRJAHR)
7. Sprint Journal of Bacteriology Research (SPRJBR)
8. Sprint Journal of Biochemistry Research (SPRJBR)
9. Sprint Journal of Biodiversity and Conservation (SPRJBC)
10. Sprint Journal of Bioinformatics and Sequence Analysis (SPRJBSA)
11. Sprint Journal of Biophysics and Structural Biology (SPRJBSB)
12. Sprint Journal of Biotechnology (SPRJBT)
13. Sprint Journal of Biotechnology and Molecular Biology Research (SPRJBMBR)
14. Sprint Journal of Biotechnology and Molecular Biology Reviews (SPRJBMBR)
15. Sprint Journal of Brewing and Distilling (SPRJBD)
16. Sprint Journal of Business Management (SPRJBMGT)
17. Sprint Journal of Cancer Research and Experimental Oncology (SPRJCREO)
18. Sprint Journal of Cell and Animal Biology (SPRJCAB)
19. Sprint Journal of Cell Biology and Genetics (SPRJCBG)
20. Sprint Journal of Cereals and Oilseeds (SPRJCO)
21. Sprint Journal of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science (SPRJCEMS)
22. Sprint Journal of Civil Engineering and Construction Technology (SPRJCECT)
23. Sprint Journal of Clinical Immunology and Immunopathology Research (SPRJCIIR)
24. Sprint Journal of Clinical Medicine and Research (SPRJCMR)
25. Sprint Journal of Clinical Pathology and Forensic Medicine (SPRJCPFM)
26. Sprint Journal of Computational Biology and Bioinformatics Research (SPRJCBBR)
27. Sprint Journal of Computer Engineering Research (SPRJCER)
28. Sprint Journal of Dentistry and Oral Hygiene (SPRJDOH)
29. Sprint Journal of Development and Agricultural Economics (SPRJDAE)
30. Sprint Journal of Developmental Biology and Tissue Engineering (SPRJDBTE)
31. Sprint Journal of Diabetes and Endocrinology (SPRJBE)
32. Sprint Journal of Ecology and the Natural Environment (SPRJENE)
33. Sprint Journal of Economics and International Finance (SPRJEIF)
34. Sprint Journal of Educational Administration and Policy Studies (SPRJEAPS)
35. Sprint Journal of Educational Research and Reviews (SPRJERR)
36. Sprint Journal of Electrical and Electronics Engineering Research (SPRJEEER)
37. Sprint Journal of Engineering and Computer Innovations (SPRJECI)
38. Sprint Journal of Engineering and Technology Research (SPRJETR)
39. Sprint Journal of English and Literature (SPRJEL)
40. Sprint Journal of Entomology and Nematology (SPRJEN)
41. Sprint Journal of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology (SPRJECE)
42. Sprint Journal of Environmental Science and Technology (SPRJEST)
43. Sprint Journal of Evolutionary Biology Research (SPRJEBR)
44. Sprint Journal of Fine and Studio Art (SPRJFSA)
45. Sprint Journal of Fisheries and Aquaculture (SPRJFA)
46. Sprint Journal of Food Science (SPRJFS)
47. Sprint Journal of General and Molecular Virology (SPRJGMV)
48. Sprint Journal of Genetics and Molecular Biology (SPRJGM)
49. Sprint Journal of Geography and Regional Planning (SPRJGRP)
50. Sprint Journal of Geology and Mining Research (SPRJGMR)
51. Sprint Journal of History and Culture (SPRJHC)
52. Sprint Journal of Horticulture and Forestry (SPRJHF)
53. Sprint Journal of Hospitality Management and Tourism (SPRJHMT)
54. Sprint Journal of Infectious Diseases and Immunity (SPRJIDI)
55. Sprint Journal of Internet and Information Systems (SPRJIIS)
56. Sprint Journal of Languages and Culture (SPRJLC)
57. Sprint Journal of Law and Conflict Resolution (SPRJLCR)
58. Sprint Journal of Library and Information Science (SPRJLIS)
59. Sprint Journal of Livestock Production (SPRJLP)
60. Sprint Journal of Marketing Management (SPRJMM)
61. Sprint Journal of Mathematics and Computer Science Research (SPRJMPCCR)
62. Sprint Journal of Mechanical Engineering Research (SPRJMER)
63. Sprint Journal of Media and Communication Studies (SPRJMCS)
64. Sprint Journal of Medical Genetics and Genomics (SPRJMGG)
65. Sprint Journal of Medical Laboratory and Diagnosis (SPRJMLD)
66. Sprint Journal of Medicinal Plants Research (SPRJMPR)
67. Sprint Journal of Medicine and Medical Sciences (SPRJMMS)
68. Sprint Journal of Metabolomics and Systems Biology (SPRJMSB)
69. Sprint Journal of Microbiology and Antimicrobials (SPRJMA)
70. Sprint Journal of Microbiology Research (SPRJMR)
71. Sprint Journal of Music and Dance (SPRJMD)
72. Sprint Journal of Neuroscience and Behavioral Health (SPRJNBH)
73. Sprint Journal of Nursing and Midwifery (SPRJNW)
74. Sprint Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism (SPRJNM)
75. Sprint Journal of Oceanography and Marine Science (SPRJOMS)
76. Sprint Journal of Parasitology and Vector Biology (SPRJPVB)
77. Sprint Journal of Peace and Development Studies (SPRJPDS)
78. Sprint Journal of Petroleum and Gas Engineering (SPRJPGE)
79. Sprint Journal of Petroleum Technology and Alternative Fuels (SPRJPTAF)
80. Sprint Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytotherapy (SPRJPPH)
81. Sprint Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology (SPRJPP)
82. Sprint Journal of Philosophical Papers and Review (SPRJPPR)
83. Sprint Journal of Physical Education and Sport Management (SPRJPESM)
84. Sprint Journal of Physical Sciences (SPRJPS)
85. Sprint Journal of Physiology and Pathophysiology (SPRJPPT)
86. Sprint Journal of Plant Breeding and Crop Science (SPRJPBCS)
87. Sprint Journal of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry (SPRJPPB)
88. Sprint Journal of Plant Science (SPRJPS)
89. Sprint Journal of Political Science and International Relations (SPRJPSIR)
90. Sprint Journal of Psychology and Counselling (SPRJPC)
91. Sprint Journal of Public Administration and Policy Research (SPRJPAPR)
92. Sprint Journal of Public Health and Epidemiology (SPRJPHE)
93. Sprint Journal of Pure and Applied Chemistry (SPRJPAC)
94. Sprint Journal of Science and Technology Education Research (SPRJSTER)
95. Sprint Journal of Sociology and Anthropology (SPRJSA)
96. Sprint Journal of Soil Science and Environmental Management (SPRJSSEM)
97. Sprint Journal of Stored Products and Postharvest Research (SPRJSPPR)
98. Sprint Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health Sciences Clinical Reviews and Opinions (SPRJTEHSCRO)
99. Sprint Journal of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Health (SPRJVMAH)
100. Sprint Journal of Vocational and Technical Education (SPRJVTE)
101. Sprint Journal of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering (SPRJWREE)
102. Sprint Journal of Yeast and Fungal Research (SPRJYFR)
103. Sprint Medical Case Studies (SPRJMCS)
104. Sprint Medical Practice and Reviews (SPRJMPR)
105. Sprint NGO Journal (SPRNJ)
106. Sprint Research in Pharmaceutical Biotechnology (SPRRPB)
107. Sprint Scientific Research and Essays (SPRSRE)