Privacy Statement

This is a very important section, especially with increasing global privacy regulations (like GDPR, CCPA, and similar laws in various countries, including Japan's APPI). You need to be transparent about how you handle personal data.

Here's a comprehensive yet clear privacy statement you can adapt for the ICCMETS Journal:

Privacy Statement for the ICCMETS Journal

1. Our Commitment to Privacy The ICCMETS Journal is committed to protecting the privacy and personal data of its users, including authors, reviewers, editors, and visitors to our website. This statement outlines our policies and practices concerning the collection, use, and disclosure of your personal information.

2. Data Collection and Use

  • During User Registration and Profile Creation: When you register on our site, we collect essential personal information such as your name, email address, affiliation, country, and professional role (e.g., author, reviewer, editor). This information is used to:
    • Identify you within the OJS system.
    • Facilitate communication regarding your submissions, reviews, or editorial duties.
    • Maintain accurate records of our users and their contributions.
    • Enable personalized access to journal features.
  • During Author Submission: When you submit a manuscript, we collect information related to the submission itself (e.g., co-authors' names and affiliations, abstract, keywords, article files). This data is essential for processing your submission, facilitating peer review, and for eventual publication.
  • During Peer Review: For reviewers, we collect information necessary to manage the review process, such as your expertise, review invitations, and review reports. Review reports are typically anonymized to protect your identity from authors in a double-blind review process.
  • Website Usage Data (Non-Personal): We may collect anonymized data related to website usage (e.g., pages visited, browser type) to improve the functionality and user experience of our platform. This data does not identify individual users.

3. Purpose of Data Processing Your personal data is collected and processed solely for the legitimate purposes of operating and managing the ICCMETS Journal, including:

  • Facilitating the 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.

4. Data Sharing and Disclosure We respect your privacy and do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties. Your data will only be shared under the following circumstances:

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

5. Data Retention We retain personal data for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, including for the maintenance of published scholarly records, or as required by legal or ethical obligations. This means 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.

6. Data Security We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. This includes using secure servers, access controls, and data encryption where appropriate.

7. Your Rights Depending on your jurisdiction, you may have certain rights regarding your personal data, including:

  • Right to Access: You have the right to request access to the personal data we hold about you.
  • Right to Rectification: You have the right to request correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
  • Right to Erasure (Right to Be Forgotten): In certain circumstances, you may have the right to request the deletion of your personal data. Please note that data associated with published articles cannot typically be erased due to the integrity of the scholarly record.
  • Right to Object: You may have the right to object to the processing of your personal data in certain situations.
  • Right to Data Portability: You may have the right to receive your personal data in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the contact details provided in the journal's "Contact" section.

8. Changes to This Privacy Statement We may update this Privacy Statement from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. We encourage you to review this page periodically for the latest information on our privacy practices.

9. Contact Us If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Statement or our data practices, please contact the Journal Manager or Editor-in-Chief using the contact information provided