Predatory journals represent a growing threat to academic integrity, exploiting open-access models to prioritize profit over scholarly quality. These journals frequently employ aggressive solicitation tactics to target vulnerable researchers. This study analyses one year of solicitation data to identify characteristic patterns and red flags, providing actionable insights to help scholars recognize and avoid predatory publishers.

A dataset of email solicitations from suspected predatory journals was compiled and analysed, examining journal names, specialties, publishers and their addresses, email addresses used, indexing claims and impact factor legitimacy. Journal claims and impact factors were verified using PubMed and Bioxbio.com, respectively. Descriptive and statistical analyses were conducted to identify patterns and red flags associated with predatory practices.

Between January 2023 and January 2024, 422 emails were received from 211 different journals, averaging 35 emails per month, demonstrating the aggressive tactics of predatory journals. These journals covered 58 specialties, with surgery (70 emails), oncology (63 emails), and general medicine (57 emails) being the most targeted fields. 80 different publishers were identified, the most active were Gavin Publishers (28/422 emails), JSchiMed Central (21/422) and Remedy Publications (21/422). 61 journals had unknown publishers. Geographically, publishers were primarily based in the USA, India, UK, Australia, Switzerland, and Japan. Of these, 128 journals falsely claimed impact factors, all of which were found illegitimate upon verification. 186/211 journals falsely claimed PubMed indexing, further highlighting their deceptive practices. Concerningly, 46 of 80 publishers evaded Beall's listing criteria despite clear predatory behaviour.

The findings highlight the widespread use of unethical tactics by predatory journals, posing significant threat to the integrity of academic publishing. This study also emphasizes the need for increased awareness and vigilance among researchers to identify and avoid predatory journals. Despite the development of guidelines and tools over the years to combat these unethical practices, they continue to persist. It is crucial to address this issue comprehensively to safeguard the integrity of scholarly communication and ensure the dissemination of high-quality research.