Why NFSU Journal of Forensic Science Migrated from Open Journal System to ScholarJMS
For many academic publishers, Open Journal Systems (OJS) has been the default platform for running a peer-reviewed journal website. It is open-source, widely adopted, and familiar to editorial teams. But the reality of journal publishing in 2025 is very different from the era when OJS became popular.
Today, journals face constant pressure from cyber threats, spam submissions, indexing expectations, performance requirements, and advanced peer review demands. When these challenges are not handled properly, the consequences can be severe: website downtime, compromised security, damaged Google indexing, and long-term harm to a journal's credibility and domain reputation.
This is exactly why the NFSU Journal of Forensic Science moved away from OJS and migrated to ScholarJMS, a modern journal management system built specifically to meet current security and publishing expectations.
This blog explains the reasons behind the migration, the real-world security threat that triggered urgent action, and how ScholarJMS solved the problems with modern architecture, automation, and safe database migration.
About the NFSU Journal of Forensic Science
The NFSU Journal of Forensic Science (NFSU JFS) is the official scholarly publication of the National Forensic Sciences University Goa Campus. It is a peer-reviewed international journal that supports research and innovation in forensic science. Key publicly available details include its e-ISSN 3049-2408, establishment year 2024, and frequency of two issues per year. NFSU Journal
Because forensic science is directly linked with justice systems, investigations, cybercrime, evidence handling, and public safety, journals in this domain must maintain high publishing integrity, strong security, and professional archival access. That is not optional. It is essential.
The Real Security Problem That Forced Migration
Many journal owners believe security issues are rare. In reality, academic journal websites are increasingly targeted because they have high-trust domains, public visibility, and predictable software patterns.
OJS, being open-source and widely deployed, becomes a frequent target for automated scans and exploit attempts. One of the most damaging examples seen in OJS environments is malicious SEO injection, where attackers insert spam pages or spam metadata into a journal website. When this happens, Google may begin showing gambling or unrelated spam terms instead of the journal's genuine pages.
The OK88 attack and how it damages journal domains
A widely discussed real-world case is the OK88 cyberattack pattern, where compromised OJS sites can start appearing in Google with casino or slot-related titles and descriptions. The Scholar9 article explains that searching "ok88 slot" can show examples of compromised OJS websites and how the attacker injects malicious titles and descriptions into Google results. Scholar9
This matters because the damage is not limited to website appearance.
It can cause:
Loss of trust from authors and reviewers
Domain reputation degradation
Google warnings and blacklisting risk
Slow recovery of indexing even after cleanup
Long-term SEO and discovery impact
The same Scholar9 article also describes the broader consequences of malware attacks on OJS sites, including downtime, unauthorized content modifications, and blacklisting effects that can impact Google and Google Scholar visibility. Scholar9
For a journal like NFSU JFS, where credibility and public trust are crucial, this kind of incident is more than a technical issue. It becomes a reputational and institutional risk.
Why OJS Struggles in Today's Publishing Environment
OJS was revolutionary in its early days. It gave journals a functional workflow when most institutions lacked journal technology. But OJS was designed for a different internet era.
Today, journals face challenges that older open-source stacks struggle to handle at scale.
Modern challenges that expose OJS limitations
1. Massive spam submission attacks
Attackers and bots attempt large-scale author registrations and fake submissions. Even when you block some, the volume increases over time.
2. Advanced web security threats
Modern threats include credential stuffing, file upload exploits, SEO spam injection, and automated scanning for known patterns. Open-source platforms can be targeted more broadly because their structure and common vulnerabilities are widely studied. Scholar9
3. Strict indexing requirements and discovery expectations
Indexing is not only about having a website. It is about stable metadata, safe access, consistent archives, and clean SEO.
4. High-performance expectations
Users today expect fast browsing, mobile-friendly pages, and smooth submission workflows. Slow journal sites increase abandonment, especially for authors.
5. Complex editorial workflows
Journals now want structured reviewer dashboards, automated reminders, clean revision tracking, and better visibility into progress.
6. Transparent peer review demands
Many institutions are moving toward more transparent publishing and verifiable peer review trails, which is not a native strength of older journal systems.
7. DOI lifecycle and metadata management
DOI is not only about assigning a DOI once. Journals need to track DOI usage, update URLs when domains change, and maintain clean deposits.
8. Database scalability
As articles, submissions, and files grow, performance and stability increasingly depend on the underlying architecture and database design.
Because of these pressures, many OJS journals silently struggle. They publish, but with hidden pain points: repeated technical incidents, ongoing spam cleanup, and constant fear of the next security problem.
The Hidden Cost of OJS Upgrades
Another key reason journals migrate away from OJS is the upgrade burden.
OJS upgrades are not just a click-and-done activity for most journal owners. They often require:
Technical team involvement
Server-level configuration knowledge
Plugin compatibility checks
Theme fixes and template adjustments
Database migration steps
Testing and rollback planning
If upgrades are postponed, security risks increase because older versions and plugins may contain known vulnerabilities. The Scholar9 security article highlights that outdated OJS core and plugins are common weaknesses attackers exploit. Scholar9
This creates a cycle where:
Upgrades are avoided because they are risky and technical
Avoiding upgrades increases security vulnerabilities
Security incidents create urgent downtime and recovery tasks
Editors lose time and trust in the platform
For high-reputation institutional journals, this cycle is unsustainable.
Why ScholarJMS Provides the Solution
ScholarJMS is not a rebranded OJS clone. It is a modern platform built by experienced publishing teams who understand the pressures journals face from security, spam, indexing, performance, and peer review complexity.
While OJS was groundbreaking in its time, ScholarJMS reflects what journals need today.
What makes ScholarJMS different
1. Security-first architecture
ScholarJMS is designed with modern security principles. Instead of waiting for the next patch release to fix known exploits, ScholarJMS reduces surface area for attacks through architecture choices that make it harder for automated scanning tools to find and exploit weaknesses. This includes structural protections against spam submissions, tighter form validation, and better isolation of user uploads.
2. Performance-focused design
Modern journals compete with commercial publishers who invest heavily in page speed and user experience. ScholarJMS delivers better loading speed for article pages, browsing, and submission processes. This translates to:
Higher author submission completion rates
Better reading and browsing time
Improved search engine crawling and page performance
3. Stronger control at admin panel level
A frequent complaint in OJS environments is limited flexibility for admin-level customization. ScholarJMS is built to give journal owners and publishers more freedom and structured control without heavy technical dependency.
4. Indexing-friendly structure by design
A journal website must be indexing-ready in a practical way: clean article pages, stable metadata, consistent archives, and fast rendering. When indexing and discovery depend on how well your platform generates and exposes metadata, modern architecture matters.
Database to Database Migration With No Data Loss
A major fear during any platform migration is data loss.
NFSU JFS had existing content from its earlier OJS setup, and the migration required complete continuity of:
Published issues
Article metadata
PDFs and supplementary files
Author records and submission history, wherever applicable
URLs and structured pages
ScholarJMS supports a database-to-database transfer approach, meaning content can be migrated systematically from the OJS database into the ScholarJMS database.
Why database migration is important
When migration is done through structured DB transfer rather than manual copying:
Metadata integrity remains consistent
Articles appear correctly in archives and issue pages
Publishing continuity is preserved
Risk of missing content reduces significantly
For journals with years of publications, this is the difference between a safe migration and a chaotic rebuild.
DOI Support and URL Updates After Migration
A very important topic for migrated journals is DOI continuity.
If a journal already has DOIs registered for its articles, and the journal changes platform or URL structure, DOI records may require URL updates to ensure DOI resolution continues correctly.
The Scholar9 security article itself shows how critical it is to protect indexing and discoverability after attacks, and DOI continuity becomes part of long-term recovery and stability. Scholar9
Why this is a major advantage with ScholarJMS
The team behind ScholarJMS is part of Sequence Research and Development Pvt Ltd, a Crossref sponsor organization in your ecosystem, which means journals can get practical support for:
Updating DOI URLs after migration
Maintaining DOI deposit accuracy
Supporting new DOI prefix sponsorship when required
ScholarJMS also simplifies DOI operations
ScholarJMS includes inbuilt facilities where Crossref credentials can be configured, allowing journal owners to:
Assign Crossref DOI to published issues or articles with a single click
Maintain DOI usage history in a dedicated DOI section in the admin panel
This is a major workflow upgrade compared to manual and error-prone DOI handling on traditional systems.
OJS vs ScholarJMS Comparison for Migrating Journals
| Criteria | OJS (Typical Reality) | ScholarJMS (Modern Approach) |
|---|---|---|
| Security exposure | Frequent target due to common patterns and outdated plugin risks Scholar9 | Security-first architecture with modern platform design |
| Spam and bot submissions | Common problem for many journals | Built to reduce spam friction and improve submission quality |
| Upgrades | Technical, risky, time-consuming | Managed updates with minimal publisher burden |
| Indexing stability | Can be affected by attacks and site issues Scholar9 | Built for clean SEO structure and stable metadata |
| DOI workflow | Often manual or complex | Inbuilt DOI creation and management capabilities |
| Migration | Often manual | Database-to-database migration approach |
Who Should Migrate from OJS to ScholarJMS Immediately
ScholarJMS is ideal for:
University journals
Medical college journals
Society journals
Multidisciplinary journals
Publishers managing multiple journals
Journals facing spam or indexing issues
Journals struggling with upgrades and plugin stability
Journals that have experienced domain reputation damage from attacks
If your journal is serious about long-term growth, migration is not optional. It becomes inevitable once security, indexing, and workflow expectations rise.
Conclusion: Migration Is No Longer a Luxury, It Is a Risk-Control Decision
The migration of NFSU Journal of Forensic Science from OJS to ScholarJMS reflects a wider reality in scholarly publishing:
The threat landscape has changed
Indexing expectations are stricter
Reputation risks are higher
Manual technical dependency is no longer acceptable for institutions
When a journal experiences security incidents like SEO injection or domain reputation compromise, the safest solution is not temporary patchwork. It is a platform built for the modern era.
ScholarJMS provides that modern foundation by combining:
Security-first architecture
Better performance and usability
Indexing-friendly publishing structure
Transparent and efficient editorial workflows
Database-to-database migration capability
DOI lifecycle support with Crossref expertise
For OJS journal owners who want stability, credibility, and future readiness, migrating to ScholarJMS is a strategic upgrade that protects both research integrity and institutional reputation.