Privacy Policy

EKTU Journal of Architectural and Construction Sciences

Effective date: May 25, 2026

The journal EKTU Journal of Architectural and Construction Sciences, hereinafter referred to as EKTU JACS, published by Non-commercial Joint Stock Company “D. Serikbayev East Kazakhstan Technical University”, hereinafter referred to as EKTU, is committed to protecting the personal data of authors, reviewers, editors, readers and other users of the journal website.

This Privacy Policy explains what personal data are collected when using the journal website, submitting manuscripts, undergoing editorial and peer review procedures and publishing materials, for what purposes such data are used, how they are protected and what rights users have.

1. Data Controller

The controller of personal data collected and processed within the activities of the EKTU JACS journal is:

Non-commercial Joint Stock Company “D. Serikbayev East Kazakhstan Technical University”
Address: 19 Serikbayev Street, Ust-Kamenogorsk, 070004, East Kazakhstan Region, Republic of Kazakhstan
Journal: EKTU Journal of Architectural and Construction Sciences
Editor-in-Chief: Olga V. Rudenko, Candidate of Technical Sciences
Email: [email protected]

2. Personal Data We Collect

The journal collects only those personal data that are necessary for the submission, consideration, peer review, editing, publication, indexing and archiving of scientific materials.

We may collect the following data.

Author data:

first name and last name;
academic degree, academic title and position;
place of work, organization, unit, faculty or department;
country and city;
email address;
phone number, if provided by the author;
ORCID iD;
brief biographical information, if provided;
information on author contribution;
information on research funding;
information on conflict of interest;
data contained in the manuscript, cover letter and other uploaded files;
correspondence with the editorial office.

Reviewer data:

first name and last name;
place of work and position;
country and city;
email address;
ORCID iD, if provided;
area of scientific expertise;
content of reviews, recommendations and editorial comments.

Data of editors and editorial board members:

first name and last name;
academic degree, academic title and position;
affiliation;
contact details;
information necessary for performing editorial functions.

Data of registered users and readers:

username;
first name and last name;
email address;
organization, if specified;
country, if specified;
data provided during registration or subscription to journal notifications.

Technical data:

IP address;
date and time of website visit;
browser and device information;
cookies data and similar technical identifiers;
user actions on the website that are necessary for the functioning of the submission and peer review system.

3. Purposes of Data Processing

Personal data are used for the following purposes:

registration of users on the journal website;
receipt and processing of manuscripts;
organization of editorial consideration;
conducting the peer review procedure, including double-blind peer review;
conducting preliminary expert and technical assessment of manuscripts using an AI reviewer in order to improve the quality of editorial screening and to identify possible methodological, structural, ethical, and substantive deficiencies in the manuscript;
communication with authors, reviewers, editors and readers;
making editorial decisions;
preparing manuscripts for publication;
publication of accepted articles;
assignment of DOI and formation of publication metadata;
archiving and indexing of published materials;
fulfillment of publication ethics requirements;
prevention of plagiarism, duplicate publications and other violations of academic integrity;
maintenance of editorial statistics and reporting;
ensuring website security and proper functioning of the OJS platform.

4. Legal Basis for Data Processing

The processing of personal data is carried out on the basis of:

the user’s consent during registration, manuscript submission or participation in the work of the journal;
the need to perform editorial, publication and contractual procedures;
compliance with the requirements of the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan;
compliance with international standards of publication ethics;
the legitimate interest of the journal in ensuring the quality, transparency and integrity of scientific publication.

The journal processes personal data in accordance with the applicable legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan, including the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Personal Data and Their Protection”. This law regulates public relations in the field of personal data and defines the purposes, principles and legal framework of the relevant activities.

5. Transfer and Disclosure of Data

The journal does not sell, transfer or disclose personal data to third parties for marketing or commercial purposes.

Personal data may be accessible only to the following categories of persons and organizations, within the limits necessary to perform editorial and publication tasks:

the journal editorial office;
members of the editorial board;
reviewers involved in manuscript evaluation;
technical administrators of the platform;
the journal publisher;
DOI, indexing and archiving services;
information systems necessary for the publication and dissemination of scientific materials;
government authorities, only in cases provided for by law.

During double-blind peer review, the editorial office takes measures to preserve the confidentiality of the identities of authors and reviewers in accordance with the adopted peer review procedure.

6. Published Data

After an article is accepted for publication, part of the information becomes public and is published together with the article, including:

author’s first name and last name;
affiliation;
email address of the corresponding author, if provided by the journal rules;
ORCID iD, if provided;
article title;
abstract;
keywords;
funding information;
conflict of interest information;
DOI;
bibliographic metadata of the article.

Publication of these data is necessary for scientific identification of authors, citation, indexing and archiving of published materials.

7. Data Storage and Protection

Personal data are stored on secure servers and in information systems used by EKTU and the EKTU JACS journal.

Access to personal data is restricted and provided only to authorized persons involved in the editorial, peer review, technical or publication process.

The editorial office applies appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect personal data against:

unauthorized access;
loss;
alteration;
unlawful disclosure;
unlawful use;
destruction.

Data related to published articles, editorial decisions, peer review, DOI, indexing and archiving may be stored for a long period necessary to ensure scientific reliability, publication history, academic reporting and compliance with ethical standards.

Data not related to published materials or mandatory archival documentation may be deleted at the user’s request, provided that their further storage is not required by law, publication ethics rules or the journal’s archival obligations.

8. Confidentiality of Manuscripts and Reviews

All submitted manuscripts are treated as confidential documents.

As part of the editorial and peer-review process, the journal may use an AI reviewer for the preliminary expert, technical, and analytical assessment of manuscripts. The AI reviewer is used as an auxiliary tool of the editorial office and does not replace the decisions of the editor, the editorial board, or independent scientific reviewers. All materials processed using the AI reviewer are treated as confidential and are used exclusively for editorial assessment, improvement of the quality of peer review, and compliance with publication ethics requirements.

The editorial office, reviewers and other persons involved in the consideration of a manuscript may not use or disclose the content of the manuscript before its publication, except in cases necessary for editorial consideration, originality checking, peer review, compliance with publication ethics or legal requirements.

Reviews, editorial comments and decisions are also treated as confidential information and are used only within the editorial process.

9. Cookies and Technical Information

The journal website may use cookies and similar technologies for:

ensuring account login;
saving user settings;
proper functioning of the manuscript submission system;
ensuring website security;
analyzing the technical performance of the website.

The user may restrict or disable cookies in the browser settings. However, this may affect the operation of certain website functions, including registration, login and manuscript submission.

10. User Rights

Users have the right to:

receive information about their personal data;
request access to their personal data;
request correction of inaccurate or outdated information;
request deletion of personal data if their storage is not required for legal, archival, publication or ethical purposes;
withdraw consent to the processing of personal data;
restrict data processing in cases provided for by law;
contact the editorial office regarding the processing of personal data.

To exercise these rights, a request must be sent to:

Email: [email protected]

11. User Consent

By registering on the journal website, submitting a manuscript, agreeing to act as a reviewer, participating in editorial work or using the services of the EKTU JACS website, the user confirms that they have read this Privacy Policy and agree to the processing of their personal data for the stated purposes.

The Author submitting a manuscript confirms that they have the right to provide the personal data of co-authors and that the co-authors have been informed about the submission of the manuscript and the processing of their data within the editorial and publication process.

12. Changes to the Privacy Policy

The EKTU JACS journal reserves the right to update this Privacy Policy in the event of changes in legislation, editorial procedures, the technical infrastructure of the website or publication ethics requirements.

The current version of the Privacy Policy is published on the journal website.

13. Contacts

For any questions related to this Privacy Policy or the processing of personal data, please contact the journal editorial office:

EKTU Journal of Architectural and Construction Sciences
Non-commercial Joint Stock Company “D. Serikbayev East Kazakhstan Technical University”
Address: 19 Serikbayev Street, Ust-Kamenogorsk, 070004, East Kazakhstan Region, Republic of Kazakhstan
Email: [email protected]