Douglas County residents are being warned about a recent e-mail scam asking people to sign up for a credit card program.

The e-mail tells consumers they must sign up for a “Verified by Visa” program to continue making credit card purchases online, District Attorney Charles Branson said. The recipient of the e-mail is invited to download a form and open it in a Web browser.

“These types of e-mails are, unfortunately, all too common and too often successful in getting consumers to give their credit card or other personal information to the scammers that send them out,” Branson said in a statement.

Credit card companies generally never send e-mails requiring sensitive account information to be communicated, Branson said. If you receive a similar e-mail, call the credit card company at the number on the back of your card to verify its authenticity.

Branson’s office is also requesting that anyone who receives the scam e-mails, or has already responded to one, to contact the district attorney’s consumer protection division at 330-2849.