Blocklist#

The Blocklist feature helps you manage journals and publishers your institution wants to avoid or flag for review. By maintaining a blocklist, your team can make informed decisions during funding request reviews and prevent publications in problematic venues.

Overview#

You can access the Blocklist from the Journals & Publishers section in the navigation menu. The blocklist page displays two tabs:

  • Journals: Blocked journals with their reasons and review status

  • Publishers: Blocked publishers

Each blocked entry shows the blocked journal/publisher and provides quick access to unblock if needed.

Understanding the Blocklist#

The blocklist is a centralized institutional policy tool that helps you:

  • Flag predatory journals: Identify journals with questionable publishing practices

  • Mark mirror journals: Note journals that are clones of legitimate publications

  • Block entire publishers: Prevent all journals from specific publishers

  • Enforce institutional policies: Ensure compliance with your open access guidelines

  • Trigger warnings: Alert reviewers during funding request evaluation

Singleton Design

CODA maintains a single blocklist for your institution. All blocked journals and publishers are managed centrally, ensuring consistency across all funding request reviews and publication workflows.

Blocking Journals#

Journals can be blocked with specific reasons that help categorize the concerns:

From the Journal Detail Page#

  1. Navigate to a journal’s detail page

  2. Click the Block button

  3. Select a reason from the dropdown:

    • Predatory: Journals with predatory publishing practices

    • Mirror: Clone or hijacked versions of legitimate journals

  4. Click Block to confirm

The journal is immediately added to your blocklist and flagged throughout CODA.

Blocking Publishers#

Publisher blocks are broader than journal blocks—they affect all journals from that publisher. If a journal from a blocked publisher is selected in a funding request, the funding request will display a bocklist note in the review section.

From the Publishers List#

  1. Navigate to the Publishers page

  2. Find the publisher you want to block

  3. Click the Block button on the publisher’s row

  4. Confirm the block in the dialog

All journals published by this publisher are now flagged, even if they’re not individually blocked.

Journal vs. Publisher Blocks

  • Journal block: Flags a specific journal (e.g., “Journal X” is problematic)

  • Publisher block: Flags all journals from a publisher (e.g., “Publisher Y” has questionable practices)

Use publisher blocks for broad policy enforcement and journal blocks for targeted concerns.

Viewing the Blocklist#

The blocklist page provides a comprehensive view of all blocked entities:

Journals Tab#

Displays all blocked journals showing:

  • Journal title and publisher name

  • Block reason: Predatory or Mirror

  • Review status: After 6 months the UI will show a reminder to review the block status of the journal.

  • Quick actions: Confirm Block or Unblock

Publishers Tab#

Displays all blocked publishers showing:

  • Publisher name

  • Quick action: Unblock

Review System#

CODA includes an automatic review reminder system for blocked journals:

How It Works#

  • When a journal is blocked, a timestamp is recorded

  • After 6 months, the journal appears as “Needs Review”

  • The warning label prompts you to reassess whether the block is still appropriate

  • You can confirm the block to reset the review timer

Confirming a Block#

When a journal shows “Needs Review”:

  1. Navigate to the Blocklist page

  2. Find the journal with the warning label

  3. Click Confirm Block

  4. The review timer resets for another 6 months

This ensures your blocklist stays current and reflects your institution’s evolving policies.

Unblocking Journals and Publishers#

Unblocking a Journal#

From the blocklist page:

  1. Find the journal you want to unblock

  2. Click Unblock

  3. The journal is immediately removed from the blocklist

Alternatively, unblock from the journal detail page using the Unblock button.

Unblocking a Publisher#

From the blocklist page or publishers list:

  1. Find the blocked publisher

  2. Click Unblock

  3. The publisher is immediately removed from the blocklist

All journals from this publisher are no longer flagged (unless individually blocked).

Integration with Funding Requests#

The blocklist automatically integrates with funding request reviews:

Automatic Checks#

When reviewing a funding request, CODA runs a Block Check:

For article publications:

  1. Checks if the journal is blocked

  2. If blocked and needs review, shows a warning

  3. If blocked and recently confirmed, shows an error

  4. Checks if the publisher is blocked (even if journal isn’t)

For monograph publications:

  1. Checks if the publisher is blocked

Check Results#

  • Success (green): “Journal and publisher are not on the blocklist”

  • Warning (yellow): “Journal [name] is on the blocklist, but needs a review”

  • Failed (red): “Journal [name] is on the blocklist” or “Publisher [name] is on the blocklist”

These checks help reviewers make informed approval decisions.

Block Reasons#

Understanding the available block reasons helps with consistent categorization:

Predatory#

Use for journals exhibiting predatory publishing practices:

  • Lack of peer review or questionable review processes

  • Misleading claims about impact factors or indexing

  • Excessive or hidden fees

  • Spam solicitation of submissions

  • Listed on predatory journal databases (e.g., Beall’s List)

Mirror#

Use for journals that are clones or hijacked versions:

  • Fake websites mimicking legitimate journals

  • Using similar ISSNs or titles to established journals

  • No legitimate publisher or editorial board

  • Attempting to deceive authors and readers

These categories help your team understand why a journal is blocked, informing decisions about exceptions or policy changes.