crossmark

Crossmark is a service operated by Crossref that provides a standardized status indicator for scholarly content. It is designed to help readers identify the current status of a document and discover any subsequent updates, corrections, or changes issued after initial publication.

Publishers integrate a Crossmark badge into the HTML or PDF of their articles. When a reader clicks the badge, a status page opens showing metadata about the item, including its DOI, publisher, and version history. The page may list corrections, retractions, expressions of concern, updates, or translations, along with links to the relevant notices.

Crossmark aims to improve transparency and trust in scholarly communication by surfacing post-publication information where readers expect it. It does not change the content itself but points to authoritative notices and records maintained by publishers and Crossref.

Participation is voluntary and requires a publisher to register the content in Crossref and embed the Crossmark citation metadata and badge in the document. The system relies on Crossref's metadata and is most effective when publishers actively maintain post-publication records. The status can be outdated if notices are not issued or not linked properly.