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The Brazilian Journal of Forensic Sciences (Revista Brasileira de Criminalística – RBC) is dedicated to the free publication of original articles that contribute to the promotion, dissemination, and scientific and technological development of forensic sciences. The journal publishes research findings, scientific and technical advances, technical-scientific projects, and case reports related to criminalistics, including its interfaces with other scientific fields such as Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Dentistry, Pharmacology, Computer Science, Accounting, Engineering, among others.
The Brazilian Journal of Forensic Sciences (Revista Brasileira de Criminalística – RBC) aims to publish original research articles and literature reviews in the field of Forensic Science. Authors must agree not to publish in any other journal any manuscript that has been submitted to and accepted for publication by RBC. No fees are charged for manuscript submission, processing, or publication.
Manuscripts should address topics of lasting interest concerning research, advances, and projects related to Criminalistics and may be submitted in the following categories:
Research Report: Scientific research based on experimental data and conducted using the scientific method.
Theoretical Study: Analysis of theoretical constructs leading to the questioning of existing models and the formulation of hypotheses for future research.
Professional Experience Report: Case studies containing analyses of conceptual implications, or descriptions of procedures or intervention strategies supported by methodologically appropriate evidence of effectiveness, relevant to forensic practitioners in different areas.
Critical Literature Review: Comprehensive analysis of scientific publications on topics relevant to the development of Criminalistics.
Brief Communication: Concise yet complete report of a specific investigation or a forensically relevant case.
Letter to the Editor: Critical evaluation of content published in the Brazilian Journal of Forensic Sciences or authors’ responses to criticisms regarding their published articles.
Technical Note: Description of original research instruments, methodologies, or forensic examination techniques.
Book Review: Critical review of a recently published work, providing readers with guidance regarding its characteristics and potential applications.
News Item: Dissemination of facts or events related to Criminalistics. Originality and exclusivity are not required for publication.
The Editors are responsible for making publication decisions based on the recommendations of two ad hoc reviewers and, when necessary, a third reviewer and/or a member of the Editorial Board.
The initial evaluation is conducted by the Section Editors, who serve on a voluntary basis. At this stage, the manuscript is assessed for its thematic relevance, scientific and methodological quality, compliance with the journal's editorial policy, scope, and adherence to the standard abstract format required by the Brazilian Journal of Criminalistics (RBC). This preliminary evaluation typically takes between 1 (one) and 15 (fifteen) days.
Once approved in this first stage, the manuscript proceeds to the Double-Blind Peer Review process. The Editorial Team appoints at least two volunteer ad hoc reviewers with recognized expertise in fields related to the manuscript's subject.
Invited reviewers have up to 15 days to accept or decline the invitation and, once accepted, 30 additional days to complete and submit their review. If an invitation is declined, another reviewer will be invited, restarting the same deadlines (15 days for invitation acceptance and 30 days for review submission).
If no response is received after the established deadline, the Editorial Office sends up to three reminder notices. Should there still be no response, another reviewer is invited.
Reviewers may recommend one of the following editorial decisions:
Accept;
Mandatory Revisions;
Resubmit for Review;
Submit to Another Journal;
Reject;
See Comments.
When reviewers' recommendations diverge substantially, the Editorial Board may request a third independent review, following the same deadlines (15 days for invitation acceptance and 30 days for evaluation).
Manuscripts requiring Mandatory Revisions must be resubmitted together with a point-by-point response letter, clearly addressing each reviewer comment and explaining how each recommendation has been incorporated or, where applicable, providing justification for recommendations that were not adopted.
Articles accepted for publication must deposit their research data in the Brazilian Journal of Criminalistics Data Repository (RBC Dataverse) whenever applicable and whenever legal, ethical, or confidentiality restrictions do not prevent data sharing.
Upon publication:
Copyright is assigned to the Brazilian Journal of Criminalistics;
Articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) license;
References are registered with Crossref, and the published article receives a Digital Object Identifier (DOI).
The Brazilian Journal of Criminalistics does not charge authors any submission, processing, or publication fees (Article Processing Charges – APCs).
Likewise, readers are not charged for accessing, reading, or downloading published articles, and registration is not required to access journal content.
The RBC adheres to the ethical principles and best publishing practices established by leading national and international organizations, including the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). In addition, the Journal is supported by two research ethics consultants who provide guidance on ethical matters when necessary.
If authors identify errors at any stage of the editorial process—or after publication—they are expected to promptly notify the Editorial Office and cooperate in issuing an Erratum, Expression of Concern, or Retraction, as appropriate.
Editors follow COPE guidelines when handling allegations or suspicions of publication misconduct. Each case is individually investigated, and corrective actions are taken whenever warranted.
Scientific misconduct includes, but is not limited to:
Data fabrication;
Data falsification;
Manipulation of research materials, equipment, or procedures;
Omission or alteration of research data or results;
Misappropriation of data or research materials;
Plagiarism;
Failure to ensure data accuracy and integrity;
Text recycling (self-plagiarism), when substantial portions of previously published text are reused without proper citation.
For cases of plagiarism, the RBC follows COPE recommendations for both submitted and published manuscripts. Depending on the severity of the misconduct and the authors' response, editors may request corrections or, when appropriate, retract the published article.
Cases of self-plagiarism are evaluated individually in accordance with the COPE Text Recycling Guidelines. Factors considered include the extent, location, and type of recycled material. Manuscripts containing unacceptable text recycling may be rejected, while published articles may require correction or retraction.
Retracted articles remain permanently available in the journal archive, clearly identified as retracted, thereby preserving the integrity of the scholarly record.
Conflicts of interest may be personal, commercial, financial, political, institutional, or academic in nature.
Authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any actual or potential conflicts that could influence the preparation, evaluation, or editorial decision regarding a manuscript.
Authors are responsible for submitting a signed Conflict of Interest Disclosure Statement during manuscript submission whenever applicable.
Information regarding potential conflicts of interest will be published at the end of each article, immediately before the References section.
The RBC screens manuscripts using plagiarism-detection software before they enter the peer-review process.
Submitted manuscripts are analyzed through an automated similarity-checking platform that compares the text against published literature and other available sources.
Similarity reports are carefully evaluated by the Editorial Team, which may request clarifications or additional information from the authors whenever necessary.
The RBC recognizes that Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools may assist authors in drafting, editing, translating, or improving manuscripts, provided that their use complies with principles of scientific integrity and proper attribution.
The Journal recommends compliance with the SciELO Guidelines for the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Scholarly Communication and the recommendations issued by COPE.
The RBC may employ AI-assisted tools to support plagiarism detection and to assist in translating titles, abstracts, and keywords into English and Spanish, as well as translating manuscripts into Portuguese when appropriate.
Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of their manuscripts. Any substantial use of AI during manuscript preparation must be explicitly described in the Methods section or another appropriate section of the manuscript.
AI tools cannot be credited as authors.
Whenever applicable, authors must submit proof of approval by the appropriate Institutional Research Ethics Committee.
Information regarding ethical approval should be included at the end of the published article and, preferably, also within the Methods section.
Upon publication, copyright is assigned to the Brazilian Journal of Criminalistics.
Published articles are distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) license, which permits users to copy, redistribute, adapt, and build upon the material for non-commercial purposes, provided that appropriate credit is given to the original authors and source, and that derivative works are distributed under the same license.
The RBC encourages authors to self-archive accepted manuscripts in institutional repositories, personal websites, academic social networks, and other non-commercial platforms, provided that full citation and a link to the official published version on the journal's website are included.
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Brazilian Association of Criminalistics
The Brazilian Journal of Criminalistics (RBC) is committed to publishing original, reliable, and socially relevant scientific research in the field of Forensic Sciences. The Journal conducts all editorial activities in accordance with the principles of scientific integrity, research ethics, editorial transparency, impartiality, academic responsibility, and the continuous improvement of scholarly communication.
This Policy establishes the guidelines governing authors, reviewers, editors, members of the Editorial Board, and collaborators regarding best practices in scholarly publishing, with the aim of ensuring the credibility of the editorial process and the integrity of the scientific record.
This Policy is based on internationally recognized standards and recommendations for publication ethics and editorial best practices, including:
Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE);
International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE);
Council of Science Editors (CSE);
World Association of Medical Editors (WAME);
Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing (COPE, DOAJ, OASPA, and WAME);
Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ);
Crossref recommendations regarding scholarly record integrity.
All submitted manuscripts must represent original research conducted ethically, using scientifically sound methodologies and in compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
Violations of scientific integrity include, but are not limited to:
Data fabrication;
Data falsification;
Inappropriate image manipulation;
Deliberate omission of relevant findings;
Suppression of methodological information;
Salami publication (fragmentation of research findings);
Duplicate publication;
Redundant publication.
Submitted manuscripts must be original and unpublished.
The Journal does not accept manuscripts containing:
Complete plagiarism;
Partial plagiarism;
Significant self-plagiarism;
Undisclosed translations of previously published articles;
Unauthorized reuse of figures or illustrations.
The RBC may employ similarity detection software at any stage of the editorial process.
Similarity alone does not automatically constitute plagiarism. All reports are assessed individually within their scientific and editorial context.
Only individuals who have made substantial contributions to the following activities should be listed as authors:
Study conception and design;
Data acquisition;
Data analysis or interpretation;
Manuscript drafting;
Critical revision of the manuscript;
Final approval of the version submitted for publication.
The following practices are not acceptable:
Honorary authorship;
Ghost authorship;
Inclusion of individuals without substantial contribution.
Changes in authorship after manuscript submission will only be accepted upon formal justification and written agreement from all authors.
All participants in the editorial process must disclose any actual or potential financial, institutional, academic, professional, or personal conflicts of interest.
Authors, reviewers, and editors must immediately report any circumstance that could compromise their independence or impartiality.
When a relevant conflict of interest is identified, the Editor may:
Appoint a different reviewer;
Replace the handling editor;
Request additional clarification;
Reject the manuscript.
Research involving human participants must include:
Approval by an appropriate Research Ethics Committee (Institutional Review Board);
Ethics approval reference number;
Compliance with applicable national and international ethical standards.
Research involving animals must include approval by the appropriate Animal Ethics Committee.
Whenever applicable, informed consent must also be documented.
The RBC encourages authors to make research data publicly available whenever:
Legal restrictions do not apply;
Judicial confidentiality does not prevent disclosure;
Ethical limitations do not exist.
Authors are encouraged to deposit datasets in recognized public repositories whenever appropriate.
The RBC adopts a Double-Blind Peer Review system.
Reviewers are expected to:
Perform independent and objective evaluations;
Maintain strict confidentiality;
Provide technically sound and constructive reviews;
Declare conflicts of interest;
Respect established deadlines.
Information obtained during the peer review process must not be used for personal or professional advantage.
Editors are responsible for:
Selecting qualified reviewers;
Preserving editorial impartiality;
Ensuring that editorial decisions are based solely on scientific merit;
Maintaining confidentiality throughout the editorial process;
Safeguarding the integrity of the scholarly record;
Investigating allegations of research or publication misconduct.
Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools may be used to assist with language editing, organization, translation, or writing support.
However:
AI tools cannot be listed as authors;
AI assumes no scientific responsibility;
Their use must be transparently disclosed whenever they substantially contribute to manuscript preparation.
Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of all submitted content.
Reviewers and editors must not upload complete manuscripts to publicly available AI platforms if doing so could compromise the confidentiality of the peer review process.
When errors are identified after publication, the Journal may adopt one or more of the following corrective measures:
Correction of editorial or production errors that do not affect the scientific content.
Correction of author errors that do not invalidate the study's findings.
Published when significant concerns exist but investigations have not yet been concluded.
Published when there is evidence of:
Scientific fraud;
Data fabrication;
Plagiarism;
Duplicate publication;
Serious methodological errors;
Ethical misconduct.
Retraction notices will remain permanently linked to the original publication.
Allegations of research or publication misconduct may be submitted by any interested party.
The Editorial Board will conduct a preliminary investigation while ensuring:
Due process;
Opportunity for all parties to respond;
Documentary review;
Consultation with specialists whenever appropriate.
Where applicable, the Journal may notify:
Authors' institutions;
Funding agencies;
Research oversight bodies;
Other journals involved.
Authors may submit a reasoned appeal against editorial decisions.
Appeals will be reviewed by an editor who was not involved in the original decision whenever possible.
All information related to submitted manuscripts shall remain confidential.
Manuscript information will be disclosed only to:
Authors;
Reviewers;
Responsible editors;
Editorial staff.
The RBC is committed to maintaining publicly available and regularly updated information regarding:
Journal scope;
Editorial workflow;
Peer review criteria;
Publication fees (if applicable);
Publication ethics policies;
Open access policy;
Digital preservation;
Copyright;
Licensing terms.
This Policy may be revised periodically by the Editorial Board to ensure compliance with evolving international publishing standards and indexing requirements.
All versions of this Policy will remain publicly available on the Journal's website.
By submitting a manuscript to the Brazilian Journal of Criminalistics, authors, reviewers, and editors acknowledge that they have read, understood, and agreed to comply with this Publication Ethics and Scientific Integrity Policy.
The RBC reaffirms its commitment to ethical, transparent, rigorous, and socially responsible scientific publishing, contributing to the advancement of Forensic Sciences and to the integrity and reliability of the international scholarly record.