OCEANSIDE -- Crooks stole personal identification numbers from an unspecified number of debit cards used at Cost Plus World Market at 2140 Vista Way, the company said.

The company said some of its customers had reported unauthorized use of their debit cards after shopping at that location or one of seven others from February through April. The others include one on Fourth Avenue in downtown San Diego and one on Villa La Jolla Drive, just south of Nobel Drive.

The theft of information didn't appear to include names, addresses or Social Security numbers, Cost Plus said. The Oakland-based company said it has replaced PIN-pad devices with more secure models and now requires clerks -- not customers -- to swipe debit and credit cards. A company spokesman declined to give specific numbers of affected customers or answer questions about specific crimes that may have occurred.

800,000 consumers reported losses of $1.2 billion last year from identity theft and other forms of consumer fraud, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

Shares of Cost Plus (CPWM) rose 8 percent Wednesday to $2.48 on the Nasdaq exchange. The company's shares are down 43 percent in the last year. Cost Plus operates 300 stores around the nation.

Contact staff writer Chris Bagley at (760) 740-5444 or cbagley@nctimes.com.