The Blood Bank of Hawaii has sent letters to nearly 40,000 blood donors and deferred donors telling them that a laptop computer containing confidential personal information was stolen in a burglary last month at the agency's Dillingham Boulevard headquarters.

In an April 16 letter to potential donors, chief operating officer Wendy Abe said the data includes names, birth dates, partial Social Security numbers and "minimal donation information."

The letter advises those who received it to check their financial and credit card records "for any unauthorized charges or actions" and to consider registering with the Federal Trade Commission to participate in a free annual credit monitoring service.

Information about the service is available at www.ftc.gov/freereports.

Randall Kusaka, communications assistant for the Blood Bank, said that so far no one whose personal information was stored in the stolen laptop has reported any irregularities with their bank accounts or credit cards.

"We urge anyone who notices a discrepancy to report it immediately to the police," Kusaka said.