Privacy Statement

PRIVACY STATEMENT

1. Data Collection and Use

When you register on this journal site, we collect personal information such as your name, email address, affiliation, country, and professional role (author, reviewer, or editor). This information is used to:

- Identify you within the Open Journal Systems (OJS) platform
- Facilitate communication regarding manuscript submissions, reviews, and editorial duties
- Maintain accurate records of contributors and their work
- Enable personalized access to journal features

During manuscript submission, we collect submission-related information including co-authors' names and affiliations, abstract, keywords, and article files. This data is essential for processing submissions, facilitating peer review, and eventual publication.

For reviewers, we collect information necessary to manage the review process, including areas of expertise and review reports.

2. Purpose of Data Processing

Your personal data is collected and processed solely for the legitimate purposes of operating and managing this journal, including:

- Facilitating submission, peer review, and publication processes
- Communicating with authors, reviewers, and editors
- Maintaining accurate records of published content and contributors
- Ensuring the integrity and quality of the scholarly publishing process
- Complying with legal and ethical obligations in scholarly publishing

3. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties. Your data will be shared only under the following circumstances:

- With Co-Authors: Your name and affiliation will be shared with other co-authors on the submission.
- With Editors and Reviewers: Relevant information (author names, abstract, manuscript) may be shared with editors and peer reviewers to facilitate the review process. In double-blind review, author identities are hidden from reviewers and vice-versa.
- Published Content: If your manuscript is accepted for publication, your name, affiliation, and ORCID (if provided) will be publicly associated with your published article.
- Archiving and Indexing Services: Metadata (including author names and affiliations) will be shared with archiving services and indexing databases (e.g., CrossRef, Google Scholar) for long-term preservation and discoverability.
- Legal Requirements: We may disclose personal information if required by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities.

4. Public Display of Personal Data

The personal data of authors (names, affiliations, and corresponding author email) is displayed publicly via the journal's website adjacent to the published article. The editorial board members may also be listed with names and email addresses on the journal's website. Personal data of reviewers and editors of specific articles are not displayed publicly and cannot be accessed by unauthorized persons.

5. Data Retention

We retain personal data for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected. Information related to published articles will be retained indefinitely to ensure the integrity and accessibility of the scholarly record. User account data will be retained as long as the account is active or as required for historical journal operations. Upon request, user accounts may be deleted; however, data associated with published articles cannot be deleted due to the integrity of the scholarly record.

6. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction, including secure servers and access controls.

7. Your Rights

Depending on your jurisdiction, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data:

- Right to Access: Request access to the personal data we hold about you.
- Right to Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
- Right to Erasure (Right to Be Forgotten): Request deletion of your personal data, subject to limitations for published scholarly records.
- Right to Object: Object to the processing of your personal data in certain situations.
- Right to Data Portability: Receive your personal data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format.

To exercise these rights, please contact the Journal Manager using the contact information provided on the journal's About page.

8. Contact Information

For any questions or concerns about this Privacy Statement or our data handling practices, please contact the Journal Manager or Editor-in-Chief via the journal's contact page.