The Kansas attorney general’s office has issued a warning about a recent credit card scam.

People in five Kansas counties, including one person in Douglas County, have received phone calls from someone claiming to be a representative from a credit card company, the office said. The caller claims to be helping to prevent credit card fraud and attempts to obtain critical information that then allows the caller to charge the victim’s credit card.

The callers claim to be from Visa or MasterCard and say they’re calling in response to an unusual purchase pattern on a credit card.

“They will already have your credit card number and address,” said Ashley Anstaett, a spokeswoman for Attorney General Steve Six. “The only thing they are missing is the security numbers printed on the back of your card in the signature line.”

The caller asks you to “verify” the three-digit code on the back of the card to prove you haven’t lost it, Anstaett said. The verification gives the scammer access to your credit card for online purchases.

“Keep in mind that these con artists are good at convincing consumers and will offer bogus assurances that they are calling from the credit card company, such as name and a ‘badge number’ or other ID number to corroborate their scam,” Anstaett said. “Your credit card company will never need to call you for the numbers on your card; they issued the card and have that information readily available.”

If you receive a similar call or if anyone attempts to obtain personal or financial information from you over the telephone illegally, you should be cautious and promptly file a police report. If you believe you’ve been scammed, you should call the attorney general’s consumer protection division at (800) 432-2310 or visit www.ksag.org.

The attorney general’s office has also received calls about the credit card scam from people in Ellis, Sherman, Finney and Comanche counties.