It might seem unduly morose to focus an editorial on fraud, plagiarism, forgery and other publishing misconducts; however, Gerodontology's new Editorial Board have had an opportunity to review our Ethical Guidelines for Authors, and I have edited the guide to accommodate their recommendations. And so I feel a duty to introduce their concerns to our readers and authors.The widespread access to a vast array of information on the internet, and the ease with which it can be used, increases the risk of fraudulent misrepresentation of information. Pressures to publish or perish in academia are as strong as ever, and academic fraud or deception occurs in many ways -including undeclared conflicts of interest, fabrication of information, distortion or 'minor adjustment' of results, submissions of previously published material without acknowledgment and, of course, outright plagiarism. More generally, it ranges from intellectual carelessness to wilful deceit, and the consequences to health care and scholarship can be very damaging. Consequently, we take such misconduct very seriously, and, when found, we prohibit the culprits from further publications and we inform their academic institutions of our findings.
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