If it is unclear whether a journal is reputable, be sure to check it out before submitting a paper. The most important aspects:

1. Is the journal listed in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)? DOAJ only lists journals that have audited quality assurance procedures.
2. Is the journal referenced in relevant subject databases or catalogs such as Web of Science or Scopus?
3. If the journal specifies a Journal Impact Factor (JIF): Is this alleged or actually correct? Check whether the journal is indexed in the Journal Citation Reports or whether the JIF is listed there; you can access the database via the FU campus network.
4. Is the publisher a member of the Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association (OASPA) or the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)?
5. Do you know the members of the Editorial Board listed and do they indicate their commitment to the journal on their own website?

If you can answer "yes" to most or all of these five questions, this is a very good indication of the magazine's trustworthiness. In addition, the following two resources provide a very good guidance (in the form of checklists) in evaluating whether the journal is trustworthy:

1. Checklist of the initiative „Think.Check.Submit.“
2. Criteria catalog for recognizing high-quality journals and so-called fake journals (in German)

The use of so-called negative lists (e.g. Beall’s List or predatoryreports.org) is not recommended. These offers are not up-to-date, incomplete and the underlying criteria are often not transparent.