INTERNET hackers drained a businessman's account of £15,000 as he sat watching.

Stuart Browne, of Bishopthorpe, near York, had logged on to his online bank account to check his funds and watched in disbelief as the balance dropped to zero. It is believed the hackers used the Mabutu computer virus to gain access to his accounts.

Mr Browne, the general manager of The Sound Solution, a soundproofing business in York, has praised the quick-thinking actions of Barclays Bank for saving his business.

When he saw thousands of pounds vanishing from his screen, Mr Browne initially thought it was an error and rang Phil Baines, at Barclays, in Parliament Street, York.

An hour later, the account was frozen seven pence from the overdraft limit.

Mr Browne said: "It was just totally unbelievable to watch the numbers rolling over.

"At first, I thought there might have been some sort of mistake on the computer at Barclays, that's why I rang Phil.

"But when he told me it was not, that is when I started to get pretty scared.

"I know people do not normally praise their banks, but Barclays has been fantastic, and Phil Baines needs a medal for what he did for us."

Although Mr Browne said life has been "panicked" for him and his six staff, it could have been far worse.

Barclays has promised to reimburse the money and the case is being investigated by its fraud team, who will contact police.

The bank has advised people to use up-to-date anti-virus software and to report irregularities immediately.

A spokesman said: "We are delighted our staff were able to respond as quickly and effectively as they did.

"Barclays customers should be assured that if, in the unlikely event they are a victim of Internet fraud on their account, any losses will be covered by us, whatever the amount. Mr Browne did exactly what we advise customers to do in his situation."