(2 Dec 2024) South Korea can no longer consider itself immune to the global scourge of academic “paper mills,” as a growing number of international students at Korean institutions have been found using these fraudulent services to fabricate research credentials, according to a new report.
The National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) revealed on December 1 that 44 papers affiliated with Korean institutions had been retracted due to paper mill involvement as of February 2024, marking a significant shift in the country’s exposure to this form of academic fraud.
The vast majority of the retracted papers — 86% or 38 papers — were published in Hindawi journals, with one paper appearing in a journal published by the Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
“While South Korea was previously considered a safe zone from paper mill issues, we’ve seen a steady increase in paper retractions since December 2021,” the NRF report stated.
“Although most cases currently involve Chinese and Indian students and few government-funded projects have been implicated, South Korea is no longer immune. We need to raise awareness and develop preventive measures.”
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