Legal notices

01Scope

This privacy policy covers account creation, sign-in, journal management, and general platform use. Additional policies published by a specific journal on its own site may also apply.

02What information do we process?

We process only what is needed to provide the service:

• Account details: name, email, password (stored irreversibly)
• Optional profile details: title, institution, ORCID, phone
• Roles and journal relationships: which permissions you hold in which journals
• Technical records: logs needed for sessions, security, and service continuity

03Cookies and sessions

We use essential cookies / similar technologies to keep you signed in, protect security, and remember language preferences:

• Authentication and session cookies (when you sign in)
• Security and abuse-prevention records
• Language and basic interface preferences

04Sharing

We do not sell your data. We share it only with technical providers required to run the service (hosting, email, storage, AI service, content delivery and security) and with competent authorities when legally required. Isolation between journals is preserved.

05Your rights

You may request access, correction, deletion, and similar actions regarding your personal data. The full list of rights and how to apply is in the KVKK notice on this page.

01Service Description

ADYS is a SaaS platform on which journals can be managed in isolation via their own domains or paths. The service covers user accounts, role and permission management, journal setup, editorial workflows, file storage, and notifications. The platform does not guarantee the scientific accuracy, originality, or publishability of uploaded manuscripts; reviewer recommendations and decisions belong to the journal’s editorial team.

02Eligibility

To use the platform you must:

• Create an account with an accurate, current email address that belongs to you
• Use the account only in your own name and within your authority
• Comply with honesty and confidentiality rules in academic or professional processes
• Have legal guardian consent if you are under eighteen (where required)

03Account and Security

You are primarily responsible for the security of your account. In particular, you must:

• Keep your password confidential; do not share it or use shared accounts
• Pay attention to email verification and security notices
• Promptly report suspected unauthorized access or account takeover
• Keep your profile and contact details up to date
• Not impersonate another person or institutional authority

04Journals, Roles, and Tenant Isolation

On ADYS, each journal is managed as a separate tenant. This means:

• You may access a journal’s data only to the extent of the roles granted to you in that journal
• Attempting to access another journal’s data or bypass isolation is prohibited
• Journal managers are responsible for invitations, role assignments, and journal settings
• The technical platform operator cannot view editorial article content; technical operations and editorial workflows are separated
• The same platform account may be used in multiple journals; your permissions in each journal are distinct

05Academic Ethics and Blind Review

The platform supports academic publishing workflows. Users agree to:

• Respect identity confidentiality in double-blind or single-blind review; not disclose author or reviewer identity contrary to process rules
• Decline an assignment or declare a conflict of interest in line with journal policy when a conflict exists
• Not use confidential information obtained as a reviewer, editor, or author for personal advantage
• Not engage in plagiarism, fabricated data, misleading statements, or other breaches of academic integrity
• Follow the journal’s publication ethics, author guidelines, and process policies

06Content and Intellectual Property

You and the relevant journal are responsible for content you upload or enter:

• Manuscripts, files, images, and metadata must comply with law, third-party rights, and licence terms
• Required declarations in submission and publishing workflows (ethics, conflicts, copyright, etc.) must be accurate
• Platform software, UI design, documentation, and marks belong to ADYS or its licensors; unauthorized copying or reverse engineering is not allowed
• Intellectual property in journal-published content is determined by the relationship between the journal and the authors

07Acceptable Use

The following are expressly prohibited:

• Spam, malware, phishing, or automation/attacks intended to disrupt the service
• Unauthorized access to other users’ accounts or journal data
• Attempts to bypass security controls, rate limits, or access barriers
• Hosting illegal, defamatory, discriminatory, or clearly harmful content
• Using the platform for bulk scraping that infringes third-party rights

08Availability and Changes to the Service

ADYS aims to provide continuous and secure service with reasonable effort. Temporary interruptions may occur due to planned maintenance, outages, force majeure, or third-party failures. Critical interruptions are announced in advance when possible. Features may be improved, changed, or discontinued for reasonable grounds over time; material changes are communicated through the platform.

09Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, ADYS is not liable for indirect, incidental, or consequential damages, lost profits, data loss, or business interruption. Editorial decisions, reviewer reports, published content, journal policies, and disputes between users remain the responsibility of the relevant journal and parties. The platform does not assume users’ or journals’ obligations toward third parties. Mandatory consumer or other protective rights remain unaffected.

10Suspension and Termination

Your account or access to a specific journal may be suspended or terminated if:

• These terms, academic ethics, or applicable law are violated
• There is a security risk, misuse, or harm to other users
• Your role in a journal is removed at the journal manager’s request
• You request account closure (subject to statutory retention obligations)

11Policy Updates

This policy may be updated from time to time. The current version is published on the platform and marked with a “Last updated” date. Material changes are announced in a reasonable manner. Continued use of the platform after a change means you accept the updated terms. If you do not accept them, you must stop using your account and request closure.

12Governing Law

These terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of Turkey. Parties will first seek a good-faith resolution of disputes; otherwise, the competent courts and enforcement offices in Turkey shall have jurisdiction. Mandatory consumer-law provisions remain reserved.

13Contact

For questions about this policy, account security, or platform use, contact ADYS through the platform’s contact channels. For journal-specific editorial or publishing matters, contact the relevant journal.

01Data Controller

In connection with creating your platform account, authentication, session management, cross-journal access, billing/subscription (if any), and platform-wide technical operations, your personal data is processed by the ADYS platform operator as data controller. Contact details are provided in the “Applications” section at the end of this notice.

02Personal Data Processed

Depending on the nature of the service and your role on the platform (author, reviewer, editor, journal manager, etc.), data in the following categories may be processed:

• Identity information: first and last name; optionally title and ORCID
• Contact information: email address; optionally phone number
• Institutional information: your affiliation and similar details you share in a journal profile
• Account and security information: password (stored irreversibly), email verification status, session tokens, language/preference settings
• Role and permission information: which roles you hold in which journals
• Usage and transaction records: meaningful actions on the platform, access times, IP address and similar technical logs
• Delivery records needed for process notifications, such as verification codes or workflow emails

03Purposes of Processing

Your personal data is processed strictly for the following purposes:

• Creating your account, verifying it by email, and enabling secure sign-in
• Allowing the same account to be used across multiple journals and managing role-based access
• Providing journal setup, management panels, and editorial workflow services
• Sending process notifications (verification, invitations, status updates, etc.)
• Maintaining tenant (journal) isolation, preventing unauthorized access, and investigating security incidents
• Keeping the platform running reliably, debugging issues, capacity planning, and improving service quality
• Performing contract and billing obligations, fulfilling legal duties, and retaining evidence for disputes

04Legal Grounds

Your personal data is processed on the following legal grounds under Article 5 of the KVKK:

• Processing is necessary for the establishment or performance of a contract (Art. 5/2-c) — providing the account and platform service
• Processing is necessary for the data controller to fulfil legal obligations (Art. 5/2-ç) — retention, information and similar statutory duties
• Processing is necessary for the establishment, exercise or protection of a right (Art. 5/2-e) — dispute and audit processes
• Legitimate interest, provided your fundamental rights and freedoms are not harmed (Art. 5/2-f) — security, preventing misuse, service continuity

05Recipients

Your personal data may be shared only to the extent necessary for the processing purpose with:

• Technical infrastructure providers such as hosting, database, file storage, email delivery and AI services
• Content delivery, secure connection and attack protection service provider (Cloudflare)
• Competent public authorities where legally required or upon a lawful request
• Users you authorize or invite (for example editors/managers in the same journal — only within that journal’s scope)

06International Transfers

Some technical service providers may be located abroad. In that case, personal data is transferred under safeguards consistent with Article 9 of the KVKK and related secondary legislation. Transfers are limited to what is necessary to provide the service.

07External Services

When you use AI-assisted features, the relevant text (for example the title, abstract or keywords) is sent to the platform's AI provider, which does not store it or use it to train models. Keyword suggestion and translation in the submission wizard run only when you press the button for it; the word you typed is then sent to OpenAlex and MyMemory. For ORCID verification, only your ORCID iD is looked up in ORCID's public registry. When a DOI is registered, the published article's metadata is sent to Crossref. No identity or contact details are sent to these services. Your connection to the site passes through Cloudflare; to serve the site securely and without interruption, Cloudflare processes your IP address and request details (page, browser information, time), and its servers are also located abroad.

08Collection Method

Your data is collected electronically, in whole or in part by automated means, through registration and profile forms, journal setup screens, your actions on the platform, email verification flows, and system logs. Completing optional fields is up to you; however, some services (such as completing journal setup) may depend on providing certain information.

09Retention Period

Your personal data is retained for as long as your membership continues and for as long as required by the processing purpose, as well as for statutory limitation, retention and audit periods. When the purpose ends or the legal period expires, the data is deleted, destroyed or anonymized. Technical records such as security logs may be kept for reasonable periods for incident review and system security.

10Data Security

ADYS applies technical and organizational measures to prevent unlawful processing or access and to ensure the safekeeping of personal data, including:

• Irreversible password storage and secure session management
• Role-based access control (RBAC) and tenant isolation between journals
• Preventing the technical platform operator from accessing editorial article content
• Role-based masking of author–reviewer identity in double-blind workflows
• Monitoring and logging to detect unauthorized use of communication and access channels

11Your Rights as a Data Subject

Pursuant to Article 11 of the KVKK, by applying to the data controller you have the right to:

• Learn whether your personal data is being processed
• Request information if it has been processed
• Learn the purpose of processing and whether the data is used in line with that purpose
• Know the third parties to whom it has been transferred, in Turkey or abroad
• Request correction if it has been processed incompletely or inaccurately
• Request deletion or destruction under the conditions set out in the KVKK
• Request that correction/deletion be notified to third parties to whom the data was transferred
• Object to a result arising against you from analysis carried out exclusively by automated systems
• Claim compensation if you suffer damage due to unlawful processing

12Applications

You may submit requests regarding your rights in writing through the platform’s contact channels. Please include information sufficient to verify your identity and a clear statement of your request. Applications are concluded free of charge within thirty days at the latest pursuant to Article 13 of the KVKK. If fulfilling the request entails an additional cost, the fee schedule published by the Personal Data Protection Board may apply. If your application is rejected, the response is inadequate, or no response is given in time, you may lodge a complaint with the Board within thirty days of learning of the response and in any event within sixty days of the application date.