Generative AI Policies
Generative Artificial Intelligence (Generative AI) and AI-assisted technologies ("AI tools") are increasingly being adopted in research and scholarly publishing. These technologies can assist researchers throughout the research and manuscript preparation process by improving efficiency, enhancing language quality, organizing content, supporting coding activities, generating visualizations, and facilitating literature exploration. At the same time, their use requires clear standards to ensure transparency, research integrity, accountability, and responsible scholarly communication.
The International Journal of Cyber and IT Service Management (IJCITSM) supports the responsible use of AI tools while recognizing that human expertise, scientific judgment, and ethical responsibility must always remain central to the research and publication process.
These policies provide guidance for authors, reviewers, and editors regarding the acceptable use of Generative AI. IJCITSM will periodically review and update these policies as AI technologies, publishing practices, and international standards continue to evolve.
Authors may use AI tools to assist with manuscript preparation, including improving grammar, language quality, readability, content organization, translation, coding assistance, and literature exploration. AI tools may also support authors in generating summaries or identifying potential research directions.
However, AI tools must never replace the authors' own scientific reasoning, interpretation of findings, critical evaluation, originality, or intellectual contribution.
Authors remain fully responsible and accountable for every aspect of the submitted manuscript.
This includes responsibility for:
Authors should carefully review the privacy policy, licensing terms, and conditions of any AI tool before using it.
Authors are encouraged to use AI systems that provide appropriate safeguards for confidentiality, intellectual property, and data privacy. Unpublished manuscripts, confidential datasets, or sensitive information should not be uploaded to AI platforms that may retain, reuse, or use submitted content for model training without adequate protection.
Human oversight is required throughout the entire manuscript preparation process.
Transparency is essential.
Authors must disclose any substantive use of Generative AI during manuscript preparation in a separate section entitled:
The declaration should include:
Suggested Statement:
During the preparation of this manuscript, the authors used [Name of AI Tool] to assist with [purpose]. Following the use of this tool, the authors carefully reviewed, revised, and verified all generated content and accept full responsibility for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the published work.
Note: Basic spelling, grammar, or punctuation corrections performed by standard writing software do not require disclosure. Where AI tools are used as part of the research methodology, their use must be fully described in the Methods section to ensure transparency and reproducibility.
Generative AI systems cannot be listed as authors or co-authors.
Only human authors may assume responsibility for:
AI-generated images may only be used for explanatory or illustrative purposes when they do not represent original research findings.
AI tools must not be used to fabricate, manipulate, or alter research data, experimental results, medical images, microscopy images, or any other scientific evidence.
When AI is used to create explanatory figures, flowcharts, conceptual frameworks, or graphical illustrations, authors should disclose the AI tool used within the figure caption and in the AI declaration.
Peer review depends on confidentiality, independence, and scientific integrity.
Reviewers must treat all submitted manuscripts as confidential documents.
Reviewers should not upload submitted manuscripts, reviewer comments, supplementary materials, or confidential editorial correspondence into AI systems that may retain, learn from, or share submitted content.
AI tools may be used only in a limited supporting capacity, such as improving the language or structure of review reports or conducting general background literature searches, provided confidentiality is maintained.
Reviewers remain solely responsible for their scientific evaluation, recommendations, and review reports.
Where AI tools substantially contribute to the preparation of a review report, reviewers are encouraged to disclose their use to the editor.
Editors are responsible for maintaining the integrity, fairness, confidentiality, and quality of the editorial process.
Editors should not upload confidential manuscripts or unpublished research materials into AI systems that cannot guarantee appropriate confidentiality protections.
AI tools may be used to support editorial workflows, including:
However, AI tools must never replace editorial judgment.
All editorial decisions (including acceptance, revision, or rejection) must be made independently by the responsible editor.
Editors remain fully accountable for every editorial decision communicated by the journal.
Generative AI technologies continue to evolve rapidly. Accordingly, IJCITSM will periodically review and revise this policy to reflect developments in scholarly publishing, research integrity, and internationally recognized best practices.
Authors, reviewers, and editors are encouraged to consult the latest version of this policy before participating in the publication process.
This policy has been developed with consideration of internationally recognized guidance, including:
Recommendations for a Classification of AI Use in Academic Manuscript Preparation.
The Use of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies in Writing and Peer Review.
Chatbots, Generative AI, and Scholarly Manuscripts.
