Clarivate has lifted its Web of Science indexing hold on Heliyon following an extensive internal research integrity audit that resulted in more than 1,000 corrections to the journal’s scientific record, including hundreds of retractions and expressions of concern.
Clarivate had placed Heliyon on hold in September 2024, temporarily preventing newly published content from being indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection amid concerns regarding the journal’s editorial and publication practices. The decision prompted scrutiny of the journal’s quality-control and research integrity processes.
Following the investigation, Heliyon undertook a large-scale review of its published content. According to information released by the journal, the audit identified practices that did not comply with its policies. The issues reportedly included compromised peer review, authorship irregularities, manipulated citations, and the use of problematic or distorted terminology in manuscripts.
More Than 1,000 Updates to the Scientific Record
The internal review has led to substantial corrective action. The journal reported approximately 1,100 corrections to the scientific record, representing about 3% of its content published over 12 years.
The updates were subsequently reported as comprising:
- 687 retractions
- 80 expressions of concern
- 2 withdrawals
- 3 removals
- 317 corrigenda
- 108 editor’s notes
These actions demonstrate the scale of the review and highlight the challenges faced by large multidisciplinary journals in maintaining the reliability and integrity of their published literature.
Web of Science Indexing Restored
Clarivate lifted the hold on Heliyon on May 14. Following the decision, the journal announced that content published during the period of the hold would be indexed after the necessary backfilling was completed.
Clarivate has also indicated that Heliyon will receive a new Journal Impact Factor and updated citation metrics in the October Journal Citation Reports update, provided the required content was backfilled by the relevant cutoff date.
The restoration of indexing is significant because inclusion in major bibliographic databases is widely used by universities, research institutions, funding agencies, and governments when evaluating journals and researchers. Changes to indexing status can therefore influence authors’ publication decisions and the perceived standing of a journal.
A Sharp Decline in Publication Output
The developments come against the backdrop of a substantial change in Heliyon’s publication volume. The journal published more than 11,000 articles in 2023 and more than 17,000 in 2024. Its publication output subsequently fell to approximately 3,000 articles in the following year, with more than 500 research papers and case reports published so far in 2026.The reduction in output, combined with the extensive integrity review, reflects a broader shift toward stronger screening and quality-control measures in high-volume scholarly publishing.
Strengthening Editorial and Research Integrity Controls
Heliyon has stated that it will continue improving its editorial workflows and research integrity procedures. Among the measures being implemented is the use of integrity-screening technology alongside human oversight to identify potential ethical concerns during submission and throughout the publication process.
The case also reinforces an important principle in scholarly publishing: correcting the scientific record is an ongoing responsibility. Removing unreliable articles, issuing expressions of concern, publishing corrections, and documenting editorial actions are essential mechanisms for protecting the reliability of the scholarly literature.
The Heliyon case illustrates both the risks associated with large-scale publishing and the importance of proactive research integrity systems. While the lifting of the Web of Science hold restores the journal’s indexing pathway, the extensive number of post-publication actions underscores the need for continuous monitoring, rigorous peer review, transparent editorial practices, and effective integrity screening.
For publishers and editors, the developments offer a broader lesson: research integrity does not end at publication. Maintaining trust in scholarly communication requires continuous oversight and timely correction of the scientific record.