Reviewer Conflicts

The ITX Journal of Information Technology & Computer Science is committed to maintaining fairness, transparency, objectivity, and integrity throughout the peer-review process.

Reviewers are required to disclose any potential conflict of interest that may influence, or appear to influence, their ability to provide an objective and unbiased evaluation of a manuscript.

Definition of Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest exists when personal, professional, financial, institutional, or competitive relationships could affect the reviewer’s impartiality or judgment during the review process.

Situations Constituting a Conflict of Interest

Reviewers should decline review invitations if they have:

  • Personal relationships with the authors.
  • Recent collaboration or joint publications with the authors.
  • Institutional affiliation with the same organization as the authors.
  • Financial interests related to the research.
  • Academic competition or rivalry with the authors.
  • Any other circumstance that could compromise objectivity.

Reviewer Responsibilities

Reviewers must:

  • Inform the editorial office immediately upon identifying a conflict of interest.
  • Decline the review assignment when impartial evaluation cannot be guaranteed.
  • Avoid using confidential manuscript information for personal or professional advantage.
  • Maintain confidentiality even after declining the review invitation.

Editorial Management of Conflicts

The editorial office will:

  • Evaluate disclosed conflicts of interest confidentially.
  • Reassign manuscripts to alternative reviewers when necessary.
  • Ensure that editorial decisions remain fair, transparent, and unbiased.

Undisclosed Conflicts

Failure to disclose conflicts of interest may result in:

  • Removal from the reviewer database
  • Exclusion from future review activities
  • Reporting to affiliated institutions if necessary
  • Additional actions according to publication ethics policies

Ethical Commitment

The journal follows international ethical publishing standards and COPE principles to ensure an unbiased and trustworthy peer-review process that protects the integrity of scholarly communication.