Research Briefs on Information & Communication Technology Evolution (ReBICTE), published by the Centre for Continental Network in Eco-Innovation and Research (CCNEIR), is committed to maintaining the highest standards of academic integrity, transparency, and ethical scholarly publishing. Plagiarism in any form is regarded as a serious breach of publication ethics and is strictly prohibited.
This policy is guided by internationally recognized best practices in research integrity and publication ethics, including the principles and workflows established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)
(https://publicationethics.org).
Plagiarism is defined as the use, reproduction, or close imitation of another person’s ideas, text, data, figures, tables, algorithms, software code, or other intellectual output without appropriate acknowledgment or citation. This includes, but is not limited to:
Direct or verbatim copying
Close or structural paraphrasing
Mosaic plagiarism
Translation plagiarism
Uncredited reuse of unpublished or published material
Plagiarism may occur intentionally or unintentionally; however, intent does not mitigate responsibility. Authors are fully accountable for ensuring that their submissions are original and properly referenced.
Self-plagiarism refers to the reuse of substantial portions of an author’s own previously published work without appropriate citation, disclosure, or editorial justification. This includes duplication of text, figures, tables, datasets, or results that misrepresents the originality or novelty of the submitted manuscript.
Limited reuse of standard methodological descriptions may be acceptable in certain technical fields; however, excessive overlap or redundant publication is considered unethical. Authors must clearly cite prior work and explain the relationship between the submitted manuscript and any earlier publications.
All manuscripts submitted to ReBICTE may be screened using plagiarism detection and similarity-checking tools at any stage of the editorial or peer-review process. Similarity reports are interpreted qualitatively, not solely on numerical similarity percentages, in accordance with COPE guidance
(https://publicationethics.org/resources/guidelines).
Editorial assessment considers:
Context and location of overlapping content
Proper citation and attribution
Disciplinary writing conventions
Nature of reused material (methods vs. results vs. discussion)
Properly cited references, standard technical terminology, and commonly used methodological language are not considered plagiarism.
Plagiarism extends beyond text. Unauthorized reuse, manipulation, or misrepresentation of figures, tables, images, flowcharts, datasets, multimedia elements, or graphical content without proper permission or citation constitutes plagiarism.
Data fabrication, falsification, image manipulation, or selective reporting of results represents serious research misconduct and is handled in accordance with established ethical procedures outlined by COPE
(https://publicationethics.org/resources/flowcharts).
Allegations of plagiarism are handled confidentially, fairly, and systematically. ReBICTE follows established COPE-style workflows for handling suspected plagiarism before and after publication, ensuring due process and proportional responses.
Relevant COPE flowcharts include:
Suspected plagiarism in a submitted manuscript
Suspected plagiarism in a published article
(https://publicationethics.org/guidance/Flowcharts)
Authors may be contacted for clarification, explanation, or supporting documentation. Failure to respond satisfactorily may result in editorial action.
If plagiarism is identified during submission or peer review, the manuscript may be rejected or returned for correction depending on severity. Substantial or deliberate plagiarism will result in immediate rejection without resubmission.
If plagiarism is identified after publication, corrective actions may include:
Publication of corrections or expressions of concern
Retraction of the article
Notification of authors’ affiliated institutions or funding bodies
Repeated or severe violations may result in temporary or permanent submission bans across CCNEIR-affiliated journals.
By submitting a manuscript to ReBICTE, authors confirm that:
The work is original and ethically produced
All sources are properly cited and acknowledged
Reuse of prior work is transparently disclosed
Copyright and intellectual property rights are respected
All listed authors share collective responsibility for the integrity of the submitted work.
Editors and reviewers are responsible for identifying potential plagiarism and reporting concerns to the editorial office. Reviewers must maintain confidentiality and must not use unpublished material for personal or professional advantage.
Editorial decisions related to plagiarism are made independently of financial or non-academic considerations, consistent with ReBICTE’s non-profit, no-APC, diamond open-access publishing model.
ReBICTE and CCNEIR are firmly committed to ethical publishing, academic accountability, and preservation of the scholarly record. The journal continuously aligns its policies with evolving international standards in publication ethics, including COPE Core Practices
(https://publicationethics.org/core-practices).
Plagiarism undermines scholarly credibility and public trust in research. ReBICTE enforces this policy rigorously to protect authors, readers, and the integrity of the academic literature.