Security Review

Is esmed.org legit or a scam?

Our verdict:Suspicious· 55/100

A predatory academic front using the 'European Society of Medicine' name to solicit high fees for questionable journals and non-existent conferences.

esmed.orgScanned 1h ago
0
Trust score
SUSPICIOUS
Heuristics 90·MT 40
Category tags
educationhealth90% MT confidence

These checks passed — but they don't clear the site. A clean antivirus result, valid SSL, and a calm server only mean it isn't hosting malware; they say nothing about whether the business is real. This verdict is based on the site's conduct and content, not a malware detection.

View density

Analysis Summary

Threat Intelligence
0/92
All engines report clean
Domain Age
6 years old
Registered Aug 30, 2020
MT Intelligence
Suspicious
High likelihood · 90% confidence
SUSPICIOUS

Warning signs detected

A predatory academic front using the 'European Society of Medicine' name to solicit high fees for questionable journals and non-existent conferences. Several risk indicators suggest caution. This site might be legitimate — but treat it as unverified until you can independently confirm.

Website Preview

Screenshot of esmed.org
LIVE RENDER
esmed.org

Automated page render — captured in a safe sandbox. What an ordinary visitor would see when loading the site. See full visual analysis →

Visual Screenshot Analysis

We capture a fresh screenshot of the live page and ask a vision model to look for scam visual patterns — fake trust badges, countdown timers, overlay pop-ups, and visual clones of legitimate brands.

10
/ 100
Low visual risk

Visual red flags detected in the screenshot

The website presents a professional and legitimate appearance for a medical society with standard UI elements and no visible scam indicators.

Visual risk10/100

What our vision model saw

5 signals

Professional layout for a medical organization with clear navigation and branding

Standard cookie consent banner present from a known provider (CookieYes)

High-quality, relevant imagery used in the hero section

No aggressive urgency tactics, fake trust badges, or suspicious pop-ups detected

Functional language switcher and clear call-to-action buttons

MT Intelligence

Advanced threat intelligence
MT Security Analyst
High scam likelihoodengineMT · Guardiantrust40/100
MT AgentLive web researchVisual inspectionNetwork correlation
0%
Confidence
The site presents a polished, professional image of a legitimate medical society, but our research reveals a pattern of predatory behavior. Multiple academic institutions, including Brown University and the University of Macau, have issued formal alerts warning that this organization targets researchers with deceptive solicitations. The 'society' is linked to known predatory publishing networks and uses a virtual mailbox in Geneva rather than a physical headquarters. Despite its 5-year domain age and clean antivirus scans, the lack of verifiable business registration and its presence on academic blacklists are major red flags. The primary goal appears to be the collection of high membership and publication fees without providing legitimate scientific value.
Full dossier
Analysis complete

Page Content

The website is well-constructed, featuring a professional layout for the 'European Society of Medicine' and its journal, 'Medical Research Archives.' It includes sections for membership, global health initiatives, and author centers. However, there is a notable absence of a physical office address or direct contact emails, which is highly unusual for a legitimate international medical organization.

Infrastructure

The domain is hosted behind a common content delivery network and uses standard security certificates. While the technical setup is clean and no malware was detected, the site relies on external payment processors like Stripe to collect fees ranging up to 1,199 EUR. The hosting IP has a clean reputation with no reported abuse.

Domain History

Registered over five years ago, the domain has a stable history which often bypasses simple security filters. However, its longevity has been used to build a facade of legitimacy for its predatory operations. It is registered through a privacy-protected service, obscuring the actual owners who are reportedly linked to questionable publishing entities in the US and Pakistan.

Web Reputation

The organization has a poor reputation within the scientific community. It is frequently cited in academic 'phish bowl' alerts and predatory journal watchlists. Researchers report receiving spam invitations for conferences that lack confirmed venues and for journals that charge significant fees while offering little to no genuine peer review.
Risk Factors
6
  • Flagged as a predatory publisher by multiple university IT departments and academic watchdogs.
  • Uses a virtual mailbox address in Geneva (Rue le Corbusier 12) with no physical presence.
  • Associated journal is listed on prominent predatory publishing blacklists.
  • Solicits high membership and publication fees (up to 1,199 EUR) under deceptive pretenses.
  • Numerous reports from researchers regarding spam solicitations for unrelated or old papers.
  • No verifiable non-profit or business registration found in Swiss or international records.
Positive Signals
3
  • Domain has been active for over 5 years.
  • Zero detections across 92 antivirus engines in our network.
  • Valid SSL certificate and professional website design.
AI Recommendation
Avoid paying any membership or publication fees to this organization. Researchers should verify journal indexing in reputable databases like Web of Science or Scopus before submitting work.
Scam network detected
1 linked domain correlated

The site is reportedly linked to Knowledge Enterprises, Inc. (KEI), an entity associated with several predatory academic journals.

kei-journals.com
Next-gen fraud intelligence
Evidence-backedCross-checked

Web Research Findings

Our live research agent queries scam-report databases, consumer-review sites, news coverage, and general web search for esmed.org, then cross-checks business-registration records and look-alike domain patterns. Everything below is pulled from what it actually found.

Domain age
5.8 yrs
Registered Aug 2020
Business registration
No public record found
Could not match the site to a registered company — common for small sites.
Clone check
Not a clone
No well-known site's layout or branding detected here.
Typosquat check
No look-alike match
The domain doesn't resemble any well-known brand's spelling.
Web mentions
5 scam reports
Key findings
7 headline facts from open-web research
  • Domain esmed.org has operated for over 5 years (registered ~2019) and hosts the European Society of Medicine site promoting membership (up to 1,199 EUR), the Medical Research Archives journal, and conferences/General Assemblies.
  • Medical Research Archives and associated KEI Journals are listed on Beall's List of potential predatory standalone journals/publishers.
  • Multiple universities (Brown, University of Macau, University of Groningen) and researchers on ResearchGate/Reddit warn against solicitations for papers, special issues, or conference presentations, citing high fees, lack of legitimacy, and
  • Reported red flags include: virtual mailbox address in Geneva (Rue le Corbusier 12) with no society presence; emails originating from Pakistan; solicitations for old/unrelated papers; conferences with no confirmed venue or real program; pla
  • Blog flakyc.blogspot.com (updated through 2024) compiles dozens of researcher complaints describing it as a predatory scam operation linked to KEI, with victims reporting payments for non-existent events and difficulty obtaining refunds.
  • The site itself publishes an article on "spotting a predatory journal" and claims double-blind peer review, but its own journal is widely flagged as predatory.
  • No positive independent verification of legitimate scientific society status, indexing in major databases like Web of Science, or transparent governance found.
Scam reports (5)
Direct quotes from public scam databases, forums, and news.
  • Flaky Academic Conferences (flakyc.blogspot.com)open

    "It is not obvious what the "European Society of Medicine" is. It might be a creation of the alleged predatory publisher Knowledge Enterprises, Inc. (KEI)."

  • Brown University ITopen

    "Solicitations to submit research to the "European Society of Medicine" and/or present at its General Assembly could result in lost money or time, as reported on Flaky Academic Conferences."

  • University of Macau e-bulletinopen

    "Beware of the email invitation sent by organizations such as Medical Research Archives or European Society of Medicine... predatory business practices involving significant publication fees... may result in loss of money or time."

  • ResearchGate discussionopen

    "Looking at https://esmed.org/ there are many red flags such as the contact info Rue le Corbusier 12 Geneva, 1208, Switzerland which is just a mailbox address... The journal... is included in the Beall’s list."

  • Reddit r/Scamsopen

    "A medical friend of mine recently received a letter praising an article they wrote and asking to publish it in a special issue of a medical journal of the European Society of Medicine (a real organization)... (Of course, there would eventua"

Research summary
Narrative write-up from our AI analyst, grounded on the facts above
We identified several scam reports and predatory publishing alerts across academic platforms and university security sites. Brown University and the University of Macau specifically warn that solicitations from this group are deceptive and intended to extract fees. Discussions on ResearchGate and Reddit confirm that the Geneva address is a virtual office, and the organization is widely considered a 'predatory' operation by the scientific community.

Antivirus Engines

Clean pass · verified
Clean across 92 engines

We cross-check every URL against our antivirus network of 92 malware and blacklist engines. None of them flagged this URL in the last scan.

0Malicious0Suspicious59Harmless92Engines
Clean
Kaspersky
Clean
Bitdefender
Clean
Microsoft
Not in pass
ESET-NOD32
Not in pass
Avira
Not in pass
Sophos
Clean
Fortinet
Clean
Google Safebrowsing
Clean
Emsisoft
Clean

No engine detections. The URL passed every antivirus and blacklist engine we queried in this scan. Stay vigilant — AV coverage is only one signal among many.

Security Scans

Blacklist Check
Not flagged on major threat lists

Checked against the major public blocklists used by browsers and security tools — no hits.

Contact Verification

We fetched the page and looked for real-world contact details. Legitimate businesses almost always publish an email on their own domain, a phone number, and a postal address. Scam shops usually don't.

What We Found
No clear contact details on the page
Emails on site's domainNone
Phone numbers2375-1924
Postal addressNot listed
Linked social profiles0
Signal Summary
Several contact red flags
  • No contact email found anywhere on the page.
  • No postal address visible on the page.
  • Phone number listed (2375-1924).

Domain & Encryption

Domain History
Age6 years old
RegistrareasyDNS Technologies Inc.
RegisteredAug 30, 2020
ExpiresAug 30, 2027
Owner privacyVisible
Encryption Certificate
StatusValid
ProtocolTLSv1.3
IssuerGoogle Trust Services · WE1
ExpiresSep 23, 2026 (89d)
Self-signedNo
Hosting & Technology
HostingCloudflare, Inc.
Server locationUS
Web servercloudflare
Platform / CMSAll in One SEO (AIOSEO) 4.9.9

Redirect Chain

Hops
1
Cross-domain
No
Lookalike
No
Punycode
No
  • 1301http://esmed.org/
  • 2200https://esmed.org/

Server Reputation

Abuse Intelligence
Confidence score0%
Reports on file0
ISPCloudflare, Inc.
Usage typeContent Delivery Network

Proceed with caution

Our automated review flagged enough risk that you should treat this site as unverified.

  • Treat esmed.org as unverified

    Do not enter credentials or send money until you have independently verified the business.

  • Verify the business through independent channels

    Check the company's social profiles, registry records, and search for recent news or reviews that are not hosted on the site itself.

  • Never use irreversible payment methods

    Crypto, gift cards, wire transfers, and cash apps offer zero buyer protection. Use a credit card or PayPal if you must pay.

  • Share your experience

    If you have additional context, drop a comment below or post on the MalwareTips forum.

    Open

Reputation Sources

How this domain rates across independent threat-intelligence and blocklist providers.

Google Safe Browsing
Not listedCheck ↗
VirusTotal
Not listedCheck ↗
AbuseIPDB
Not listedCheck ↗

Referenced Domains

Outbound domains this page links to or loads resources from. Each links to its own security scan.

Safety FAQ

Common questions about this site, answered directly from the scan data above — so the answers always reflect the latest verdict on this page.

  • Our automated security review marked esmed.org as suspicious. Several warning signs were detected; it may still turn out legitimate, but you should verify it through independent channels before trusting it with money or credentials.
  • esmed.org currently scores 55/100 on our trust scale. We found enough warning signals to recommend caution. Verify the site through independent channels before entering credentials or money.
  • Yes. esmed.org presents a valid TLSv1.3 certificate issued by Google Trust Services · WE1, expiring in 89 days. Note that SSL only encrypts the connection — it does not guarantee that the site itself is trustworthy.
  • esmed.org is 5.8 years old, registered on 8/30/2020 through easyDNS Technologies Inc.. Scam domains are often freshly registered — a site under 6 months old warrants extra caution.
  • No. All 92 antivirus engines in our malware network report esmed.org as clean.
  • No. esmed.org is not currently listed on the major browser blocklist feeds that modern browsers use.
  • esmed.org resolves to an IP operated by Cloudflare, Inc. in US (usage type: Content Delivery Network). Hosting location alone doesn't make a site good or bad, but unusual geography for a brand's claimed country is one of many signals we weigh.
  • This is a permanent record of the scan run on June 26, 2026. The verdict and evidence above reflect that scan and do not change on their own. If circumstances around esmed.org have changed, MalwareTips staff can run a fresh scan, which re-runs every check from scratch and publishes an updated report.

Final Verdict

0
Trust / 100
Final Verdict·esmed.org
SUSPICIOUS

This site operates as a predatory academic organization that uses deceptive practices to solicit publication and membership fees from researchers. While the website looks professional, multiple universities and academic watchdogs have flagged it as a front for predatory publishing. Do not provide payment or personal research data to this entity.

Avoid paying any membership or publication fees to this organization. Researchers should verify journal indexing in reputable databases like Web of Science or Scopus before submitting work.

AV engines
92
MT passes
2
Net signals
0
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This report is generated automatically by combining threat intelligence, domain signals, and an AI security analyst. It is informational, not legal advice. Always use your own judgement before sharing personal information or money online.