Privacy Policy

The International Journal of Real-Time Applications and Computing Systems (IJORTACS) is committed to protecting your privacy and personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect your personal data when you use our website and services.

Last Updated: August 15, 2025

By using our services, you consent to the collection and use of your information as described in this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with our practices, please do not use our services.

Personal Information

We collect personal information when you:

• Register an account: Name, email address, institutional affiliation, phone number
• Submit manuscripts: Author details, co-author information, research data
• Review manuscripts: Reviewer credentials, expertise areas, review history
• Subscribe to newsletters: Email address and communication preferences

Automatically Collected Information

We automatically collect certain information when you visit our website:

• IP address and geographical location
• Browser type and version
• Pages visited and time spent on site
• Referral sources and search terms
• Device information and screen resolution

Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We use cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, analyze usage patterns, and improve our services. You can control cookie settings through your browser preferences.

We use your personal information for the following purposes:

Academic Publishing Services

• Processing manuscript submissions and managing peer review
• Communicating with authors, reviewers, and editors
• Publishing accepted articles and maintaining publication records
• Indexing and archiving published content

User Experience and Communication

• Creating and managing user accounts
• Providing customer support and technical assistance
• Sending newsletters and journal updates
• Notifying users of relevant opportunities and deadlines

Quality Assurance and Security

• Preventing fraud and maintaining platform security
• Analyzing usage patterns to improve our services
• Ensuring compliance with academic publishing standards
• Maintaining data integrity and preventing spam

We process your personal information based on the following legal grounds:

Legitimate Interests

• Operating and improving our academic publishing platform
• Facilitating scientific communication and collaboration
• Maintaining the integrity of the peer review process
• Preventing fraud and ensuring platform security

Contractual Necessity

• Processing submissions and providing publishing services
• Managing user accounts and providing customer support
• Fulfilling our obligations under publication agreements

Consent

• Sending marketing communications and newsletters
• Using cookies and tracking technologies
• Processing special categories of personal data when applicable

We may share your information in the following circumstances:

Academic Publishing Partners

• Indexing services and academic databases
• DOI registration and crossref services
• Institutional repositories and libraries
• Plagiarism detection services

Service Providers

• Email service providers for communications
• Web hosting and cloud storage services
• Analytics and website optimization tools
• Payment processors for publication fees

Legal Requirements

• When required by law or legal process
• To protect our rights and prevent fraud
• In response to lawful requests from authorities
• To enforce our terms and conditions

We never sell your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information:

Technical Safeguards

• SSL/TLS encryption for data transmission
• Secure server infrastructure and firewalls
• Regular security updates and vulnerability assessments
• Access controls and authentication mechanisms

Organizational Measures

• Limited access to personal data on a need-to-know basis
• Regular staff training on data protection
• Incident response procedures
• Data backup and recovery protocols

While we strive to protect your information, no method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security but continuously work to improve our protective measures.

We retain your personal information for different periods depending on the purpose:

• Published articles: Indefinitely for archival and citation purposes
• Author and reviewer data: 7 years after last interaction
• User accounts: Until deletion is requested or account becomes inactive
• Email subscriptions: Until unsubscribed
• Website analytics: 26 months
• Security logs: 12 months

We will delete or anonymize your personal information when it is no longer needed for the purposes for which it was collected, unless retention is required by law.

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal information:

Access and Portability

• Request access to your personal information
• Receive a copy of your data in a portable format
• Obtain information about how your data is processed

Correction and Updates

• Correct inaccurate or incomplete information
• Update your account details and preferences
• Modify your communication settings

Deletion and Restriction

• Request deletion of your personal information
• Restrict processing of your data
• Object to certain types of processing

Consent Management

• Withdraw consent for marketing communications
• Opt-out of non-essential cookies
• Unsubscribe from newsletters

To exercise these rights, please contact us using the information provided below. We will respond to your request within 30 days.

As an international journal, your personal information may be transferred to and processed in countries other than your own. We ensure appropriate safeguards are in place:

• Adequacy decisions from relevant data protection authorities
• Standard contractual clauses approved by regulatory bodies
• Binding corporate rules for internal transfers
• Certification schemes and codes of conduct

We only transfer personal information to countries and organizations that provide adequate protection for your rights and freedoms.

Our services are not intended for individuals under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If we become aware that we have collected personal information from a child, we will take steps to delete such information promptly.

If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. We will notify you of any material changes by:

• Posting the updated policy on our website
• Sending email notifications to registered users
• Displaying prominent notices on our platform
• Updating the "Last Updated" date

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically. Your continued use of our services after any changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:

This Privacy Policy is effective as of August 15, 2025 and applies to all information collected by IJORTACS.