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China's Ministry of Science and Technology has released new guidelines on the use of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) in scientific research to enhance scientific integrity and reduce misconduct. The rules ban the direct use of generative AI tools for research funding applications, requiring clear labelling of AI-generated content. The guidelines address challenges arising from rapid AI development, emphasizing responsible research conduct.

Ethical bodies in Sub-Saharan Africa face challenges in their capacity to perform their work due to a lack of ICT resources and academic training in ethics and regulatory affairs. €1.5 million (about US$1.62 million) has been granted to Benin, the Gambia, and Ivory Coast to install the Research for Health and Innovation Organiser software, a cloud-based platform that could make the work of such bodies more efficient while enabling them to improve ethical conduct and research integrity, review processes, build capacities in oversight and monitoring.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission has arrested 59 staff of public and private universities between 2017 and 2022 for bribery, abuse of power, false claims and other financial offences. One of the cases involved a director of a public university recently, allegedly receiving a car as an inducement to help a company obtain a tender worth about RM1.6 million, while a university professor was also arrested over alleged false claims involving a research fund of RM66,000.

A petitioner accused Adesh Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Bathinda of unethical practices and alleged employment of at least 12 ghost teachers. The employees would just come to the private institute and mark their presence and then return to their own institutes. The high court directed medical bodies to investigate the complaint and take appropriate action.

The comprehensive database of academic journals, newspapers, and research papers, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), has lost a legal battle over copyright infringement after a retired professor of economic history accused it of uploading more than 160 of his articles without permission or payment. Beijing Intellectual Property Court has forced the academic platform to remove his papers, pay him more than CNY700,000 (US$110,000) in compensation.

Curtin University implicated in unethical research using facial recognition technology to identify Uyghur and Tibetan minorities has lobbied unsuccessfully for the publishers to retract it on several occasions. An internal review of research by a resigned professor at the university found that he breached several ethical codes, including failing to obtain informed consent and approval. The article remains online although Curtin University deputy vice-chancellor has urged the publisher to remove all references to the university.

A research team from the Canadian University of Dubai has identified a new approach to combating academic integrity using machine learning techniques. The new method applies an algorithm to identify cases of cheating through post-exam analysis of student grades from quizzes, midterm exams, and the final exam of an entire class. This technique can complement the work of commercial plagiarism detection software and provide a deterrent and non-intrusive alternative to remotely proctored exams.