Privacy Policy

Effective Date: May 16, 2026

Prime Academic Press LLC ("we," "us," "our," or "Prime Academic Press") is committed to protecting the privacy and security of your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard personal data in connection with our website, editorial processes, publishing activities, and technology partnerships.

We comply with applicable global privacy laws, including the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), and other relevant data protection regulations. By using our services, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this policy.

1. Scope of This Policy

This Privacy Policy applies to all personal data collected through:

Our official website (primeacademic.org)
Our journal submission
Publication of articles, books, and other scholarly content
Communications with authors, reviewers, editors, readers, and partners
Technology partnership applications and collaborations
Newsletter subscriptions and marketing communications

This policy does not apply to information collected by third-party websites or services that may be linked from our platform.

2. Information We Collect

We collect personal data only to the extent necessary to provide our services and fulfill our legitimate business purposes.

2.1 Information You Provide Directly

Account information: Name, email address, affiliation, country, job title, and account credentials
Researcher identifiers: ORCID iD, ROR ID, Scopus ID, and other professional identifiers
Author information: Manuscript content, co-author details, funding information, conflict of interest disclosures, and biographical information
Reviewer information: Review reports, comments, editorial recommendations, and conflict of interest disclosures
Editor information: Editorial decisions, correspondence, and administrative records
Partner information: Company/institution details, contact information, and partnership proposal details
Communication data: Emails, support tickets, and other correspondence with our team

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

Technical data: IP address, browser type, device information, operating system, and access timestamps
Usage data: Pages visited, links clicked, search queries, and time spent on our website
Cookie data: As described in our separate Cookie Policy below

3. Legal Basis for Processing

We process personal data based on one or more of the following legal grounds:

Consent: When you explicitly agree to the processing of your data (e.g., newsletter subscriptions)
Contractual necessity: To perform our obligations under a contract with you (e.g., publishing your manuscript)
Legitimate interest: For the operation of our business, improvement of our services, and prevention of fraud or research misconduct
Legal obligation: To comply with applicable laws, regulations, or court orders

4. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information for the following purposes:

To manage user accounts and authenticate users
To facilitate the manuscript submission, peer review, and editorial processes
To publish and disseminate scholarly content
To communicate with authors, reviewers, editors, and readers
To process technology partnership applications and collaborations
To send administrative and service-related communications
To send newsletters and marketing communications (with your consent)
To improve our website, services, and user experience
To generate aggregated, anonymized usage statistics
To detect and prevent fraud, research misconduct, and other illegal activities
To comply with legal obligations and enforce our terms of service

5. Information Sharing and Disclosure

We never sell or rent your personal information to third parties for their own marketing purposes.

We may disclose your personal information only in the following circumstances:

To service providers: To third-party vendors who assist us in operating our business (e.g., hosting providers, payment processors, email service providers). All service providers are contractually required to protect your data and use it only for the purposes we specify.
To editorial participants: To editors, reviewers, and other editorial staff as necessary for the peer review and publication process.
To indexing and preservation services: To Crossref, DOAJ, LOCKSS/CLOCKSS, and other trusted organizations for the purpose of indexing, archiving, and preserving scholarly content.
For legal reasons: When required by law, court order, or government request; to protect our rights, property, or safety; or to investigate potential violations of our terms of service.
With your consent: When you explicitly agree to the disclosure of your information.

6. Data Retention

We retain your personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, or as required by law.

Author and publication data: Retained indefinitely to maintain the integrity of the scholarly record.
Reviewer and editor data: Retained for 7 years after the conclusion of the editorial process, unless longer retention is required for legal or archival purposes.
Account data: Retained until you request deletion of your account.
Marketing data: Retained until you unsubscribe from our marketing communications.
Legal and compliance data: Retained for the period required by applicable laws and regulations.

When personal data is no longer needed, we securely delete or anonymize it.

7. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These measures include:

Encryption of data in transit (SSL/TLS) and at rest
Regular security assessments and vulnerability testing
Access controls and role-based permissions
Secure data backup and disaster recovery procedures
Employee training on data protection and security practices

While we take all reasonable steps to protect your data, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. Therefore, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8. Your Data Protection Rights

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

Right of access: To request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
Right to rectification: To correct inaccurate or incomplete personal data
Right to erasure: To request deletion of your personal data, where legally permitted
Right to restriction of processing: To request that we limit the processing of your data
Right to data portability: To receive your personal data in a structured, machine-readable format
Right to object: To object to the processing of your data for certain purposes
Right to withdraw consent: To withdraw your consent at any time, where processing is based on consent

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at [email protected]. We will respond to your request within 30 days.

9. International Data Transfers

Prime Academic Press is based in the United States. Your personal data may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States and other countries where our service providers operate. These countries may have data protection laws that differ from those in your country of residence.

When transferring personal data internationally, we ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your data, including standard contractual clauses approved by the European Commission.

10. Cookie Policy

10.1 What Are Cookies

Cookies are small text files that are stored on your device when you visit a website. They allow the website to recognize your device and remember your preferences or actions over time.

10.2 Types of Cookies We Use

We use the following types of cookies on our website:

Necessary Cookies: These cookies are essential for the operation of our website. They enable basic functions such as page navigation and access to secure areas of the website. Without these cookies, the website cannot function properly.
Performance Cookies: These cookies collect information about how visitors use our website, such as which pages are visited most often and if they receive any error messages. This information helps us improve the performance and usability of our website.
Functionality Cookies: These cookies allow our website to remember choices you make (such as your language preference) and provide enhanced, more personalized features.
Analytics Cookies: These cookies help us understand how visitors interact with our website by collecting and reporting information anonymously. We use Google Analytics to analyze website traffic and improve our services.

10.3 Third-Party Cookies

Some cookies on our website are placed by third-party services that appear on our pages. These third parties may use their own cookies to collect information about your online activities across different websites. We do not control these third-party cookies and are not responsible for their privacy practices.

10.4 Managing Cookies

You can control and/or delete cookies as you wish. Most web browsers allow you to manage cookie settings through their browser options. You can delete all cookies that are already on your device, and you can set most browsers to prevent them from being placed. However, if you disable cookies, some features of our website may not function properly.

For more information about how to manage cookies, please visit your browser's help documentation or aboutcookies.org.

10.5 Changes to This Cookie Policy

We may update this Cookie Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the updated policy on our website with a new effective date.

11. Children's Privacy

Our services are not intended for children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have collected information from a child under 13, please contact us immediately.

12. Changes to This Policy

We reserve the right to update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the updated policy on our website with a new effective date. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.