Conflict of Interest Policy

Readers can only judge research properly if they know what interests might have shaped it. FS therefore asks for full transparency about any conflict of interest that could influence, or appear to influence, research, review or editorial decisions.

What a Conflict of Interest Is

A conflict of interest exists when a person's financial, personal, professional or other private interests pull against their responsibilities in research, review or publication, so that a reasonable observer might wonder whether their judgement was affected.

Authors

At submission, authors must disclose any financial, personal or professional relationship that could be seen to affect their research or how they interpret it. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Funding for the work described
• Employment, consultancy, speaker fees or other financial ties to organisations with a commercial interest in the subject, such as manufacturers, technology providers or service companies in future systems
• Personal or professional relationships with anyone who could gain or lose from publication

Disclosures go in a dedicated "Conflict of Interest" or "Competing Interests" statement. If there are none, say so explicitly, for example: "The authors declare no conflict of interest."

Reviewers

Reviewers must declare any conflict before agreeing to review, such as a close relationship with the authors, a competing study or earlier involvement in the work. They must decline where a conflict exists. See the reviewer-specific policy.

Editors

Editors must step away from any manuscript where they have a conflict, including their own work, work by close collaborators, or work from their own institution where objectivity could be questioned. Such manuscripts are reassigned. See the editor-specific policy.

Independence from Commercial Interests

Editorial decisions rest on scientific merit alone. They are never influenced by commercial or financial considerations, including Article Processing Charges, sponsorship or advertising.

Non-Compliance

Failing to disclose a relevant conflict may be treated as a breach of our Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement. If it comes to light after publication, the article may be corrected or retracted.