Beta
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Beta
Predatory journal audit
Free risk-screening for researchers — cross-checks the major scholarly databases plus AI, so you spot a predatory or de-indexed journal before you submit.
Writing an article? Follow the 7-step path from idea to publication. Start →
Start with the free journal check on the left. Each next step uses what you already entered.
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Mostly about paying and about what to do when something does not arrive.
Not answered here? E-mail jhunter.project.support@gmail.com with your order number — a person reads it.
“A thief can steal all your belongings, but he can never steal your knowledge.”
— Hakim Imar
Beta 1.0
JHunter is a free, independent tool that helps researchers screen academic journals for signs of predatory or fraudulent behaviour before submitting their work — to avoid wasted money, lost time and reputational damage.
For each journal it cross-checks several public scholarly databases (Scopus, DOAJ, CrossRef, OpenAlex, Sherpa Romeo, NLM/PubMed), compares the publisher against Beall's List, and runs two AI models to look for hijacking, retractions and other historical warnings. The result is a 0–100 trust score, a verdict, and the evidence behind it.
Each check makes live API calls and runs two AI models, which have cost and usage limits. The daily cap keeps the tool free for everyone during the beta. Limits will rise as the project grows.
JHunter gives automated risk signals, not a legal or expert verdict — confirm with the official sources before you submit. Data: Scopus Source List (© Elsevier B.V., for reference), the OAK list of Uzbekistan (oak.uz), DOAJ, Crossref, OpenAlex, NLM, Sherpa Romeo, Beall’s List, Stop Predatory Journals. The checklist is adapted from CASRAI (CC BY 4.0).
The free check is a quick screen. If you are seriously considering a journal, JHunter can read its official author guidelines and a sample of its recent open-access articles, then tell you what that journal actually publishes — and build a manuscript skeleton to match.
Check your topic free → — the check costs nothing and tells you the price for your journal.
Institutions ordering in volume, or anyone who would rather arrange payment directly, can write to jhunter.project.support@gmail.com.
Our principle: this project was built to simplify researchers' lives — never to do their research for them. We don't write articles for others; we help you verify journals and structure your own work. Commissioned research and consultations are separate, individually negotiated services (see ).
Built by Dilafruz Shaimardanova · · jhunter.project.support@gmail.com
News & updates: Telegram — t.me/jhunter_project
Official registration and recommendations
JHunter is officially recognised in Uzbekistan:
Ministry of Justice — registration
Academy of Sciences — recommendation
Registration of self-employed individuals (Uzbekistan)
Documents open as PDF in a new tab. Questions? jhunter.project.support@gmail.com
JHunter · Beta
Questions? jhunter.project.support@gmail.com
JHunter · Beta
By using JHunter you agree to the following:
Author & owner: Dilafruz Shaimardanova · jhunter.project.support@gmail.com
Journal: —
Subject: [JHunter Issue]
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Reference:
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The free plan gives every visitor 5 checks per day. If you need more — for a research project, a library, or a department — request additional checks below and the author will set you up with a code.
Secure online self-service purchase is coming soon; for now requests are handled personally.
Thanks — the author will email you a code shortly. If your mail app opened, just press send.
Illustration for a fictional journal — a real dossier is built from the journal’s own author guidelines and its recent open-access articles.
Not sure what to search? Tap any journal to run it through JHunter. These span different fields and quality levels so you can see how the tool responds.
Tapping runs a live check and uses one of your daily checks. For a free look that uses none, see the sample report →
Free forever: 5 journal checks per day + this guide. No account needed.
IMRaD — Introduction, Methods, Results and Discussion — is the standard skeleton of a research article in most indexed journals. Follow it and editors can find what they need instantly; deviate and desk rejection becomes far more likely.
One paragraph of 150–250 words — a mini-version of the whole paper, like a movie trailer. Write it last, and build it as five sentences: (1) the big problem or context · (2) your specific objective or hypothesis · (3) who/what was studied and how, in brief · (4) your most important result, with the numbers · (5) the conclusion and its real-world impact. Add 4–6 keywords that do not repeat title words.
1The hook & broad context — define the topic; why does it matter, and to whom?
2The literature review — what other researchers have already found, with citations ("Smith et al., 2023 showed that…").
3The gap — what is missing or unsolved in those studies; this paragraph is the justification for your paper's existence.
4Purpose & hypothesis — "To fill this gap, this study aims to…", ending with your explicit prediction or research question.
1Participants / materials — who or what was studied, how many, how selected (inclusion/exclusion criteria); for lab work: materials, grades, strains.
2Design & groups — how subjects were divided (control vs experimental); the independent and dependent variables.
3Step-by-step procedure — chronologically, exactly what you did: timeline, dosages, equipment models, software versions.
4Data & statistical analysis — which tests (t-test, ANOVA, chi-square…) for which question, and the software used. Name the ethics approval where applicable.
1Main finding first — state the overall outcome immediately and point to your primary table or figure ("As shown in Figure 1…").
2Detailed statistics — exact measurements, means with confidence intervals, effect sizes, exact p-values. Strictly factual — no "why" here.
3Secondary findings (optional) — unexpected trends, minor correlations, control-variable data. Every figure/table must be cited in the text and numbered in order.
1The direct answer — answer your research question in plain language; did the results support the hypothesis?
2Interpretation & comparison — why these results? Compare with the studies cited in your Introduction: agreements and contradictions.
3Limitations — be honest: uncontrolled variables, sample size, design constraints. Naming your own weaknesses first builds credibility with reviewers.
4Future work — the next logical experiment for the next researcher.
Not a summary of what you did — an answer to "so what?" One sentence restating the main finding, then the big picture: how can a doctor, engineer, or policymaker use this tomorrow? No citations, no new claims.
Follow the target journal's style exactly (APA, Vancouver, IEEE…). Cite primary sources, keep the gap-defining literature recent, verify every DOI. A free reference manager (Zotero, Mendeley) prevents most formatting rejections.
The tense rule — Methods and Results in the past tense (you already did it); general established facts in the Introduction in the present tense.
The separation rule — never mix Results and Discussion. Results = what happened (numbers). Discussion = why it happened (meaning).
Want to know whether a specific journal will accept your topic — judged on what it has actually published? That's the paid Topic Fit report.
We take on commissioned original research in the humanities (for example, jurisprudence) — privately funded or grant-funded — as well as research consultations and academic collaborations. Terms, scope, and pricing are agreed individually. Commissioned research is published under our copyright, with you as the commissioning party. Use this same form for any commercial proposal.
Note: we do not write articles for others or provide "turnkey" papers. JHunter exists to simplify researchers' lives — not to do their research for them.
Thank you — we'll review it and reply to your email to discuss the details.
Checking a journal is free and takes seconds. Topic fit tells you whether it actually publishes on your subject — measured against the articles it really printed, not guessed.
Looking for the free IMRaD structure guide instead? Open it here — nothing to request, nothing to pay.
Check your topic free →Example output · Journal of Digital Law & Innovation (illustrative)
| Indexing | Scopus Q1 (since 2019) · Web of Science ESCI · DOAJ |
| Publisher | Verified — university press, transparent ownership |
| APC | $1,200 (waivers available for low-income countries) |
| Acceptance rate | ≈ 28% · median time to decision: 7 weeks |
| Integrity checks | No hijacking / name-collision · not on any blacklist |
| Verdict | TRUSTED — safe to submit |
Counted from the journal’s recent open-access articles, not estimated. Coverage and depth are reported separately so the score can be audited rather than trusted.
This is a mock-up for illustration. A real report is measured against the journal’s own recent articles, and every article it cites carries a DOI and a link. Check your topic free →
JHunter is a free screening aid for researchers. It gives automated risk signals about academic journals — not a legal or professional verdict, and never a guarantee. Data can be incomplete or out of date; always confirm at the official sources before deciding where to submit. The choice and its consequences are yours.
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JHunter is free and built by one person. If the guide helps you, the best support costs nothing:
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Questions or a broken download? Write to us: t.me/SHDil · jhunter.project.support@gmail.com
