Privacy Statement

1. Commitment to Data Privacy

GEOCIVIA: Journal of Geotechnical Engineering and Civil Infrastructure is firmly committed to safeguarding the privacy and personal data of authors, reviewers, editors, and readers. The journal complies with internationally recognized best practices in data protection, including the principles set forth in the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

2. Data Collection

The data collected from registered and non-registered users is limited to what is necessary for the normal operation of a peer-reviewed scholarly journal. This includes:

• Personal Information: Names, institutional affiliations, email addresses, and mailing addresses.

• Professional Identifiers: ORCID iDs and declared research interests, which are used to facilitate appropriate reviewer assignment.

• Technical Data: IP addresses and session cookies required for the secure and reliable operation of the Open Journal Systems (OJS) platform.

3. Use of Data

All data collected through the journal website are used exclusively for legitimate journal-related purposes, including:

• Editorial Workflow: Managing manuscript submission, double-blind peer review, editorial evaluation, and publication decisions.

• Communication: Contacting authors regarding their submissions and inviting qualified experts to participate in the peer-review process.

• Indexing and Metadata Distribution: Essential bibliographic metadata (including author names, affiliations, and article titles) are shared with trusted third-party indexing services (e.g., Crossref, Scopus, Google Scholar) and digital preservation networks (PKP PN, LOCKSS) to ensure discoverability, accessibility, and long-term archiving of published content.

4. Data Disclosure Policy

• No Commercial Sale: The journal does not sell, rent, or otherwise distribute personal data to third parties for commercial or marketing purposes.

• Public Scholarly Record: By publishing in GEOCIVIA, authors acknowledge that their names, institutional affiliations, and email addresses will be displayed in the published article (PDF and journal website) as part of the permanent scholarly record.

• Reviewer Confidentiality: Reviewer identities and related information are treated as strictly confidential and are never disclosed to authors or third parties, in accordance with the journal’s Double-Blind Peer Review policy.

5. User Rights

Registered users may access, review, and update their personal profile information at any time through their user accounts on the journal website.

Note on Data Deletion: While users may request account deletion, data associated with published articles (such as author names and affiliations) cannot be removed, as this would compromise the integrity and reliability of the scholarly record.

For any questions or concerns regarding data protection and privacy, users are encouraged to contact the Principal Contact listed on the journal’s Contact page.