Good Morning, Australia! – A sinister message might awaken European officials to the crisis on the southern frontier – Is your computer spying on your banking transactions?  Yeah, maybe – Weird showbiz news – And a lot more in your CareerSpot World News Briefs:

Happy Lunar New Year!

European countries are worried that Islamic State (IS) terrorists and other militants may soon be mixed in with the waves of immigrants crossing the Mediterranean from lawless Libya – if they haven’t already.  A pro-IS blogger pushing this idea says, “Pandemonium could be wrought in the southern European states,” and talks of “closure of shipping lines and targeting of Crusader ships and tankers”.  The post caught the attention of security consultants and diplomats in countries fighting IS.  Egypt’s UK Ambassador Nasser Kamel warns, “In the next few weeks, if we do not act together, they will be boats full of terrorists also.”  Thousands have arrived on the Italian island of Lampedusa just this week.

Qatar has recalled its ambassador to Egypt, in a dispute over Cairo’s air strikes on Islamic State targets in Libya, claiming that the punitive action “could harm innocent civilians”.  Egypt bitterly lashed out, saying it shows Qatar “supports terrorism”.  To be fair, Qatar doesn’t officially endorse terrorism but there have been frequent allegations its billionaires openly fund it without consequences.  The Arab League siding with Cairo, and urging a lifting of the arms embargo on the Libyan military so it can fight back against IS.  Egypt struck out in eastern Libya after IS militants beheaded 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians. 

Lenovo says it is disabling secret adware that the computer giant hid on laptops and PCs.  It’s called “Superfish”, and it behaves more like malware than advertising, compromising the security of the units and injecting ads onto people’s browsers against their wishes.  It apparently eavesdropped on users as they conducted online transactions – including personal banking.  Lenovo hasn’t divulged why it was there in the first place, and for how long the company was installing it. 

The UN Human Rights chief is demanding the Tanzania act on violence against albinos.  This, after police found the mutilated body of a one-year old albino boy, his limbs severed by witch doctors to make “magic charms”.  Another four-year old albino girl is still missing.  “I call on the Tanzanian authorities to swiftly investigate and prosecute perpetrators of this terrible crime and to strengthen its protection measures for people with albinism,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said in a statement, condemning “the horrific murder and mutilation of Yohana Bahati”. 

Colombia’s Constitutional Court took the coward’s way out, ruling to keep existing laws on allowing same-sex couples to adopt children – but only if one of the partners is a biological parent of the child.  Human Rights activists say the ruling didn’t go far enough, and the Catholic Church kept blathering on about a mum and a dad, and blah blah blah oh shut up. 

Fighting raged in eastern Ukraine, despite that ceasefire that no one except European diplomats appears to be respecting.  Shelling continued near the important railway hub of Debaltseve; Kiev says Russian-backed rebels seem to be massing for an assault on the major port of Mariupol.

Entourage actress and former porn star Sasha Grey insists she has not been killed in the Ukraine civil war.  A rebel website claimed she was working as a nurse for Russian soldiers (who supposedly aren’t taking part in the war, lulz) but was brutally murdered by Ukrainian troops.  She released a series of tweets condemning war in general and saying she loves her fans in Ukraine and Russia.

Vanilla Ice says it was all just a misunderstanding, baby.  Cops arrested the Florida-based recording “artist” (my fingers hurt just typing that) and reality TV show host after some items stolen from an abandoned home were found in his.. uh.. crib.  The abandoned home just happened to be next door to a residence the 47-year old Rob Van Winkle was renovating as part of his TV home improvement show.  Yo, word to your muthuh, this can’t possibly be a publicity stunt.