OJS Security Checklist for Academic Journals

• Checklist: security is maintenance
• Checklist: updates, plugins, and accounts
• Checklist: files, backups, and email security
• Checklist: monitoring and incident readiness

• Services
• Editorial Diagnosis
• Contact

OJS security is not a single setting. It is a maintenance practice that includes updates, plugin review, access control, file permissions, backups, monitoring, and careful production change management.

The goal is defensive stability. A journal should reduce exposure, improve recovery options, and make problems visible early without relying on improvised fixes during an incident.

Keep OJS, plugins, themes, PHP, and server components within supported ranges. Remove unused plugins, review administrator accounts, and avoid sharing privileged access across multiple people without accountability.

Plugins should be installed only when they are needed and maintained. Every plugin increases the need for compatibility review during upgrades and troubleshooting.

Private editorial files should not be directly accessible through the public web server. Permissions should allow OJS to operate while limiting unnecessary access to application and file directories.

Backups should include the database, code, configuration, public files, and private files. Email delivery should use authenticated services where possible because password resets and workflow messages are part of operational security.

Monitor uptime, disk space, certificate validity, backup status, logs, repeated errors, and mail delivery. Monitoring does not prevent every incident, but it gives the team a better chance to respond early.

If suspicious behavior appears, preserve logs, avoid broad unplanned changes, and diagnose carefully. JournalsHQ supports defensive technical review through services, editorial diagnosis, and contact channels.