The National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) revealed on December 1 that 44 papers affiliated with Korean institutions had been retracted due to paper mill involvement as of February 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Dec. 2 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea can no longer consider itself immune to the global scourge of academic “paper mills,” as a growing number of international students at Korean institutions have been found using these fraudulent services to fabricate research credentials, according to a new report.
The National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) revealed on December 1 that 44 papers affiliated with Korean institutions had been retracted due to paper mill involvement as of February 2024, marking a significant shift in the country’s exposure to this form of academic fraud.
Paper mills are commercial enterprises that produce fake or low-quality research papers, selling authorship credits and handling the submission process to academic journals on behalf of researchers.
While traditionally associated with China, these operations have become a global concern, prompting the Committee on Publication Ethics to issue a position statement this year.
The problem has grown substantially in recent years, with papers linked to Korean institutions jumping from just two in 2019 to 31 in 2022. Many of these cases came to light during a mass retraction of over 8,000 papers from Hindawi journals in 2023 due to research misconduct.
“The actual number of paper mill publications may be higher, considering the time lag between publication and retraction,” the NRF report warned.
Among the 178 co-authors identified in the 44 retracted papers, 65 listed Korean institutional affiliations. Of these, 46 were estimated to be foreign nationals — predominantly Chinese (25) and Indian (7) students or researchers — while 19 were Korean nationals.
Woosuk University had the highest number of retracted papers with five, followed by Sangmyung University with four, and Kunsan National University and Dankook University with three each.
The vast majority of the retracted papers — 86% or 38 papers — were published in Hindawi journals, with one paper appearing in a journal published by the Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
“While South Korea was previously considered a safe zone from paper mill issues, we’ve seen a steady increase in paper retractions since December 2021,” the NRF report stated.
“Although most cases currently involve Chinese and Indian students and few government-funded projects have been implicated, South Korea is no longer immune. We need to raise awareness and develop preventive measures.”
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
