The Rise of Predatory Conferences

While predatory journals receive significant attention in discussions of academic publishing integrity, predatory conferences represent an equally serious — and sometimes overlooked — threat to researchers. These events mimic legitimate academic conferences in name and appearance but exist primarily to collect registration fees, offering little or no genuine intellectual exchange, rigorous abstract review, or meaningful networking.

Researchers who attend predatory conferences may find their work poorly disseminated, their affiliations associated with disreputable organisations, and their travel and registration funds wasted. In some cases, fraudulent conference proceedings may be published under misleading titles or falsely claimed to be indexed in academic databases.

Common Warning Signs

Broad and Vague Scope

Predatory conferences typically advertise an implausibly wide range of topics — "all areas of science, technology, engineering, arts, and management" — to maximise the pool of potential paying attendees. Legitimate conferences are organised around specific research communities with focused themes.

Unsolicited, Flattering Email Invitations

Much like predatory journal solicitations, invitations to predatory conferences often arrive unsolicited via email, addressed generically or with exaggerated flattery about your "distinguished research." The email typically emphasises early-bird registration deadlines to create urgency.

No Verifiable Organising Committee

Search for the names of the conference chairs, committee members, and keynote speakers online. Predatory conferences frequently fabricate or misrepresent their organising committees, listing scholars who have no awareness they have been named. Legitimate conferences have committees of known, active researchers who can be independently verified.

Guaranteed or Near-Instant Acceptance

Legitimate academic conferences review abstract submissions against quality and relevance criteria. If a conference guarantees acceptance or responds within hours of submission with an acceptance notification, the "review" process is almost certainly a formality designed to secure your registration fee.

Suspicious Venue and Date Information

Predatory conferences sometimes list prestigious-sounding venues (major hotels in global cities) that they have not actually booked. They may change venues, dates, or even cancel events after collecting fees. Verify the venue booking independently and look for past conference records from the same organiser.

No Professional Website with Substantive Content

A credible conference website will include a detailed programme (or preliminary programme for future events), clear submission guidelines, confirmed keynote speaker profiles, and transparent information about proceedings publication. Predatory conference websites are often templated, sparse, and contain recycled or plagiarised content.

Proceedings Published in Unverifiable Sources

Be sceptical of claims that proceedings will be "indexed in major databases." Check directly whether past proceedings from the same conference series appear in IEEE Xplore, ACM Digital Library, Scopus, or other relevant databases — do not rely on the conference website's claims.

How to Verify a Conference

  • Check past editions: A legitimate conference series will have verifiable records of previous events — published programmes, proceedings, and participants you can contact.
  • Consult your professional society: Most academic disciplines have professional associations that maintain or endorse lists of recognised conferences. For example, the ACM and IEEE do this for computing; the APA for psychology.
  • Ask colleagues: Word of mouth within your research community is one of the most reliable filters. If experienced colleagues in your field have not heard of a conference, treat it with caution.
  • Use Think. Check. Attend.: The Think. Check. Submit. initiative has an equivalent tool — Think. Check. Attend. — at thinkcheckattend.org, which provides a structured checklist for evaluating conference invitations.

If You Have Already Registered

If you have paid a registration fee for a conference you now believe is predatory, contact your institution's finance office and consider requesting a chargeback through your payment provider if fees were paid by card. Document all communications. Report the conference to your institution's research integrity office, and consider flagging it through academic integrity reporting channels so that other researchers are warned.

The Bottom Line

Attending and presenting at legitimate conferences is valuable for networking, receiving feedback, and disseminating your work. Predatory conferences offer none of these benefits and can actively harm your professional standing. A few minutes of due diligence before registering — or before submitting an abstract — is all it takes to protect yourself.