Privacy Policy

NexQ Research Consortium is committed to protecting the privacy of every visitor, author, reviewer, editor, and registered user of our Platform. This Privacy Policy applies to all journals, books, and digital services associated with NexQ Research Consortium, and to data collected solely through this website; it does not extend to any unaffiliated third-party site. This Policy should be read alongside our Terms of Use, Terms & Conditions, and Disclaimer.

This Privacy Policy describes how NexQ Research Consortium ("we," "us," "our") collects, uses, discloses, and safeguards personal information when you visit our website, register for an account, submit a manuscript, subscribe to alerts, or otherwise interact with our publishing platform (the "Platform").

• This Policy applies to all visitors, authors, reviewers, editors, editorial board members, institutional representatives, and registered subscribers.
• This Policy governs data collected through our website(s), submission systems, author dashboards, and any associated mobile or API clients.
• By using the Platform, you acknowledge that you have read and understood how your information is handled as described herein.

For the purposes of this Policy, the following definitions apply:

• "Personal Data" — any information relating to an identified or identifiable individual, such as a name, email address, affiliation, or IP address.
• "Processing" — any operation performed on Personal Data, including collection, storage, use, disclosure, or deletion.
• "User" — any visitor, registered author, reviewer, editor, or subscriber who interacts with the Platform.
• "Service Provider" — a third party engaged by us to perform functions on our behalf, such as hosting, email delivery, or analytics.
• "Cookies" — small data files placed on your device that allow the Platform to recognise your browser and store certain preferences or activity.

We collect information in two broad categories: information you provide directly, and information collected automatically as you browse the Platform.

• Information you provide — name, email address, institutional affiliation, country, research interests, CV/biography, manuscript files, reviewer reports, and correspondence with our editorial team.
• Information collected automatically — IP address, browser type and version, device type, operating system, referring page, and the date and time of each visit.
• Organisational identifiers — where your IP address or access method identifies you as part of a customer organisation (such as a university or company), we may record that organisation's identity to maintain a record of institutional usage.

As you browse the Platform, certain information is automatically gathered by our servers through the use of HTTP cookies and standard web logging. This data is collected solely to improve the website, maintain security, and compile aggregate statistics — not to build an individual profile of casual visitors.

• Website browsing activity, including pages viewed and articles accessed.
• Account registration details, submitted when you create an author, reviewer, or editor profile.
• Manuscript submission data, including files, metadata, and co-author information.
• Communications you send to us, such as support enquiries or editorial correspondence.
• Information from social media features (such as share buttons or social log-in), where you choose to use them.

This usage data helps us understand where our readership is located globally and how the Platform is performing — it does not, on its own, identify a casual visitor personally.

NexQ Research Consortium uses cookies and similar tracking technologies (including web beacons, pixel tags, and local storage) to operate the Platform, remember your preferences, analyse usage patterns, and improve the overall user experience. By continuing to use the Platform, you consent to our use of cookies as described below.

We use the personal data we collect strictly for purposes connected to operating the Platform and providing our editorial and publishing services, including to:

• Process manuscript submissions and manage the peer review and editorial workflow.
• Create and administer author, reviewer, and editor accounts.
• Communicate with you regarding submissions, review invitations, publication status, and Platform updates.
• Send alert notifications and newsletters you have opted in to receive.
• Maintain the security, integrity, and proper functioning of the Platform.
• Generate aggregated, anonymised statistics to understand readership and improve our services.
• Comply with applicable legal, regulatory, and publication-ethics obligations.

Where applicable data protection law (such as the GDPR) requires a legal basis for processing, we rely on one or more of the following:

• Consent — for example, when you opt in to receive alert notifications or newsletters.
• Contractual necessity — to provide the Services you request, such as manuscript processing or account administration.
• Legitimate interest — to maintain Platform security, improve our services, and conduct aggregate analytics, balanced against your rights and interests.
• Legal obligation — to comply with applicable law, regulatory requests, or publication-integrity investigations.

Where we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

Information you provide to us is treated as confidential, and we uphold that confidentiality in strict adherence to this Policy and applicable legal standards. As a publishing organisation, we do not sell, rent, or otherwise trade your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.

• We may share data with trusted Service Providers (such as hosting, email-delivery, or payment-processing providers) strictly to the extent necessary to operate the Platform, under confidentiality and data-processing obligations.
• We may disclose information where required by law, court order, or governmental authority, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of NexQ Research Consortium, our users, or the public.
• Peer review identities and reviewer reports are handled in accordance with our editorial confidentiality policy and are not disclosed beyond the editorial workflow without consent, except where required by publication-ethics investigations.

We use third-party analytics tools, such as Google Analytics, to understand how visitors use the Platform and to generate reports that help us improve our services. These tools may set their own cookies and collect data in accordance with their own privacy policies.

• Analytics data is generally aggregated and used for statistical purposes; it does not identify individual casual visitors by name.
• You may review Google's Privacy Policy for details on how Google processes analytics data, and may opt out of Google Analytics tracking using Google's official browser add-on.
• Where the Platform integrates social media sharing or social log-in features, any information you provide through those features is also subject to the relevant third party's own privacy policy.

The Platform allows registration for various roles, including author, reviewer, editorial board member, and editor. The registration process involves collecting essential personal information, such as your name, institutional affiliation, country, email address, research interests, CV, and ORCID identifier where provided.

• Information you provide is securely stored according to the role you register for.
• Once your application is submitted, our editorial team reviews it and initiates further communication tailored to the role selected — for example, periodic review invitations for registered reviewers.
• Authors' names, affiliations, and email addresses may appear on Published Content as part of standard academic publishing practice; by submitting a manuscript, all listed authors consent to this disclosure.
• You may unsubscribe or request removal of your registration data at any time by contacting us using the details in Section 19.

You may subscribe to our alert services to receive notifications about new publications, Platform initiatives, and relevant news updates. These alerts are sent exclusively to our registered subscriber base.

• Only your name and email address are required to subscribe to alerts.
• A double opt-in mechanism is used: after registering, you will receive a confirmation email, and your subscription is only activated once you confirm it.
• Members affiliated with partner societies, universities, or institutions with whom we have collaboration agreements may automatically receive alerts as part of that collaboration, while retaining the right to unsubscribe at any time.
• You may opt out at any time by selecting the "Unsubscribe" link included in every alert email.

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes described in this Policy, including the following general principles:

• Account and registration data is retained for as long as your account remains active, plus a reasonable period thereafter to address residual administrative or legal enquiries.
• Manuscript and peer review records are retained in accordance with academic publishing-integrity standards, which may require longer-term retention for editorial audit purposes.
• Alert and newsletter subscriber data is retained until you unsubscribe or request deletion.
• Server and analytics logs are retained for a limited period sufficient for security monitoring and statistical analysis, after which they are anonymised or deleted.

Where retention periods are mandated by law or by publication-ethics obligations (such as retaining records of a retracted article), we retain the minimum data necessary to satisfy those obligations.

We make sure that any data we gather is shielded from unauthorised access by third parties. We take extra care to keep your information private through a combination of technical and organisational security measures, including:

• Encrypted data transmission (HTTPS/TLS) across the Platform.
• Access controls limiting internal access to personal data on a need-to-know basis.
• Regular security review of our submission systems, databases, and hosting infrastructure.
• Secure storage of credentials, with passwords stored using industry-standard hashing.

As an international academic publishing platform, your personal data may be transferred to, stored, and processed in countries other than your country of residence, including the country in which our servers or Service Providers operate.

• Where we transfer personal data internationally, we take steps intended to ensure it receives an adequate level of protection, such as relying on Service Providers bound by appropriate contractual safeguards.
• By using the Platform, you acknowledge and accept that your data may be processed outside your home jurisdiction in order to provide the Services.

The Platform is intended for academic and professional use by adults — including researchers, authors, reviewers, editors, and institutional representatives — and is not directed at children.

• We do not knowingly collect personal data from individuals under the age of 18 without appropriate parental or guardian consent where required by applicable law.
• If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected personal data from a child without appropriate consent, we will take reasonable steps to delete that information promptly.

You have the right to decide whether to retain or have us process your personal information. Depending on your jurisdiction, your rights may include the following:

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details provided in Section 19.

NexQ Research Consortium may provide links to external websites, citations, databases, or repositories that are not under our control. We are not responsible or liable for the privacy practices, content, or security of any linked third-party website.

• The inclusion of a link does not imply endorsement of the linked site or its privacy practices.
• We encourage you to review the privacy policy of any third-party website before providing personal information to it.
• Your decision to visit a linked website is entirely voluntary and at your own risk.

NexQ Research Consortium reserves the right to modify this Privacy Policy at any time. Updates take effect upon being posted to the Platform with a revised effective date. Where changes are material, we will use reasonable efforts to notify registered users by email or through a prominent on-Platform notice.