2023 - Privacy

WINNER - Alice Chen, Kambala

"To me, privacy is the freedom to make decisions and have personal space. Privacy is an idea that serves as an area and time of personal freedom in every individual’s daily life. The improvement in modern technology has led to a change in privacy, in addition, we must be more careful about our privacy especially online. Young people should learn more about privacy, and how to stay safe online. Therefore, privacy is like a trusted companion that protects me in our increasingly digitally driven society. It isn’t something up for negotiations, but as a human basic right that everyone has. "

‘WHAT DOES PRIVACY MEAN TO YOU?’

You’ve just received a notification that you’ve been tagged in a photo by your friend

Sally. Everything hangs suspended in mid-air. What photo would she tag you in? You

quickly unlock your phone and furiously tap one-too-many-times on the same Instagram

notification before it loads- a selfie that she took with you last week at the park. But it’s

not just any photo; in comparison to Sally’s perfectly airbrushed skin and model-worthy

smile, it's you, your braces, and your crooked glasses. You’re absolutely furious,

especially when you see the comments below her post- it’s like beauty and the beast…

did the girl on the right somehow get lost? You were best friends, or at least, that’s what

you thought. But why would she post such an unflattering photo of you next to her? A

knot twists in your throat, unsure of what to make of the situation. Sally’s refusal to take

down the photo doesn’t help either. Feeling crushed, you stare at the photo- a piece of

your identity forever plastered on the Internet for all to see.

With the advancement of technology, its presence within our society is greater than

ever. It has vastly shaped our daily lives, bringing revolutionary changes and

opportunities. Friends and family from opposite ends of the Earth are now able to

contact each other with the click of a button. Thousands of hours in paperwork is being

saved by leveraging AI automation. But the real question is: at what cost? Social media

users, in particular, are often placing themselves at risk to their privacy and personal

safety. As they upload their personal data onto platforms such as Facebook, Twitter,

Snapchat or TikTok, people who they have never met before are judging their latest

Instagram selfie and responding with their thoughts and criticisms. Very soon, your

identity becomes measured by the number of likes and comments that you get on a

single picture, much like the one that Sally posted of you. It’s this unwanted exposure to

the virtual world that is causing us to lose control over our identities and sabotage our

privacy, the one thing that is supposed to allow us to operate without judgement. It’s

ironic that these social platforms, initially used to bring us closer to one another, now

have the potential to cause individuals to feel more distant and alone.

As more of our activities move online, the upload of our data is an inevitable process,

and the concern over digital privacy is becoming increasingly relevant. More personal

data is being transferred and stored online, often without enough security. Just like the

photo Sally posts, it can lead to distressing comments and a loss of privacy. Uploading

photos or information online can sometimes lead to judgement, cyberbullying, or

hacking. This can make people feel worried and less eager to share anything online. It

highlights the need for caution when sharing personal information on the internet.

Our attention to privacy must increase, especially online. People need to understand

more about privacy and online safety, especially young people. Online bullying and

harsh behaviour can occasionally happen, which can leave people feeling really

unhappy. As a result, laws and regulations governing the protection of personal

information should be more stringent. Businesses that gather our data must be

transparent about how they use it and give us the option of allowing them to use it or

not. Many people utilise social media during their free time. But spending too much time

on electronics might occasionally leave individuals feeling awful. Long periods of screen

usage might damage your eyes or disrupt your sleep. Observing other people's online

posts can make you feel excluded or inadequate. Therefore, it's crucial to take a break

from technology.

Privacy is like a trusted companion that keeps me safe and allows me to be myself.

Privacy is similar to the challenge that lies before us; we should ensure that this right is

kept and protected in our society. It is important in our everyday lives and we should all

try to respect each other's privacy.

RUNNER UP - Jade Ross, Padua Tyabb College

"I came across the AMHAEC competition on my schools announcement page and it really resounded for me so I made an entry. I spoke about the importance of privacy in developing teens and how it shouldn’t be ignored and I hope that in the future teens can get the privacy that they need when they need it. I hope that my essay can help to prove the point in that teenagers shouldn’t be denied the right that is privacy. I want the future of youth mental health to be bright for all. So that no one has to struggle alone."

‘WHAT DOES PRIVACY MEAN TO YOU?’

Privacy is a crucial building block in the development of adolescents' mental health. Without

adequate privacy adolescents can feel like their lives are going off the track, this can create

tension with family members and overall cause declining mental health. These three reasons

are why privacy is an essential part of an adolescent's mental health and shouldn’t be

ignored.

With Inadequate privacy, adolescent's can feel like their lives are going off the track and they

aren’t the author of their own narrative. According to Verywell Family ‘every teen craves

some privacy’. This is because they’re growing and developing and they naturally want to

distance themselves from parents and people seeking to baby them. The privacy needs of

teenagers should be incorporated into every parent's routine because with inadequate

privacy, teens can feel like their life is not theirs to live anymore and they aren’t in control.

Without the crucial privacy that teenagers need, tension can build up between family

members. This can be particularly hard when people may be dealing with helicopter parents.

Parenting for Brain defines helicopter parenting as ‘parenting that pays excessive attention

to children’s every move and experience’. Privacy is so important to pre-teens and

teenagers. This is why helicopter parenting is so detrimental to the child's affected mental

health, with this parenting style it is extremely common for tension to build up between

parent and child. Helicopter parenting strips teenagers of crucial privacy that they need

causing tension to build with parents and family members.

A lack of privacy may cause a teengager’s mental health to decline. FHE Health says that a

loss of privacy can lead to ‘mistrust’ making ‘forming connections and healthy relationships’

feel impossible. Without healthy relationships and good connections with people it’s only

natural for your mental health to decline. The lack of privacy that teens may experience may

cause them to withdraw from others causing their mental health to go downhill. If you notice

your mental health declining don’t be scared to get help from places such as Kids Helpline

and Headspace.

The three reasons that I elaborated on above are why a lack of privacy is detrimental to the

development of adolescents’ mental health and shouldn't be ignored. When privacy is

disregarded teens can feel like their life is out of their control, like they’re not the protagonist

in their own story, tension is then created between family members and mental health

declines due to lack of relationships. This is why nobody should turn a blind eye to the

privacy needs of teengagers.