OK, I forgot to update this thread.
So when I initially called in to Synchrony using the phone number that was listed under the account in my credit report...I got a lot of runaround and confusion as to whether the account actually existed or not. They basically just said they would look into it and get back to me.
I ended up receiving the actual card at my house a few days later. I called the phone number on the back (different than the one on my CR) and I could actually look up the account info on their automated system (which recognized my real phone number as the one linked to the account). So I got in direct contact with a rep through the automated workflow, told them my situation, and then got forwarded to the fraud department. They immediately closed the account and initiated a fraud investigation. The rep breezed through a bunch of basic questions for me and said I would receive a letter in the mail within 60 days on the outcome of the investigation. If the account was found out to be fraudulent, the credit reporting agencies would automatically be updated.
I asked a bunch of questions (I wanted to know how my personal information was used to obtain this card) and the rep was pretty tight lipped about any additional details (probably for legal reasons). But he did advise me to get in touch with Paypal directly and request to investigate whether there was a 2nd Paypal account fraudulenly opened in my name there. It sounded like this situation is something they commonly deal with. After doing some research, apparently thieves like to open Paypal accounts with people's personal information that they obtain, then apply for Paypal credit during a purchase, because they can immediately bill it to the newly approved card without having to wait for the physical card and activate it. In fact, on the Paypal forums, there's a ton of people who receive letters in the mail because somebody tried to do this with their information but their credit score lead to a decline.
Paypal supposedly only allows 1 personal account per individual but I don't know how strict that is or if there is a loophole if you just open a business account using your same information as a sole proprietor (you wouldn't need an EIN like an LLC). And it doesn't look like they care about addressing how their instant credit approval system for purchases is so susceptible to easy fraud.
I will update again once I get some resolution to this thing. In the meantime, I filed a fraud report with the FTC, alerted all 3 credit bureaus and also froze my credit report at all 3 bureaus. I'm taking no chances going forward lol.
