Identity theft is a crime that affects millions of Americans each year. If you’ve discovered fraudulent accounts or unauthorized transactions in your name, taking immediate action is essential.

We at Hays Cauley, P.C. understand how overwhelming this situation can feel. This guide walks you through reporting identity theft to law enforcement and the Federal Trade Commission, plus concrete steps to protect yourself moving forward. Serving South Carolina, including Greenville, Columbia and Charleston.

Report Identity Theft to Law Enforcement

Filing a police report is your first critical step when identity theft occurs. Contact your local police department in person or by phone and explain that you are a victim of identity theft. The police will create an incident report and assign you a case number, which you will need later when disputing fraudulent accounts with creditors and credit bureaus. Identity theft is a felony under South Carolina Code § 16-13-510, carrying penalties up to 10 years imprisonment and fines upon conviction. Your incident report becomes official documentation that law enforcement recognizes the crime, which strengthens your position when banks and lenders question disputed charges.

Collect Your Evidence Before Meeting Police

Collect everything related to the fraudulent activity before you walk into the police station. Obtain copies of fraudulent account statements, credit card charges you did not authorize, bills sent to unfamiliar addresses, and any suspicious emails or letters. Include your credit reports showing accounts you never opened-you can pull free reports from AnnualCreditReport.com. Write down the dates you discovered each fraudulent item and when you first noticed something wrong.

List what identifying information was compromised (your Social Security number, driver’s license, date of birth, or account numbers). The more documentation you bring, the faster police can process your report and the clearer the picture becomes for any investigation.

Provide Specific Details About the Fraud

When you meet with police, be precise about what happened. Explain exactly which accounts were opened in your name, which ones you have already contacted, and which remain unresolved. Tell the officer the approximate date the fraud started and whether you have noticed new fraudulent activity since discovery. Mention if mail was stolen, if you received unexpected bills or credit inquiries, or if you got calls about accounts you never created. Give the officer the names of financial institutions involved and any case numbers you have already received from banks or credit card companies. The police report should reference your South Carolina residency and location where the identifying information was obtained or used, since venue for prosecution occurs in the county where the victim lived when the information was obtained or used.

Move Forward with Federal Reporting

Once you have filed your police report and obtained your case number, you are ready to take the next step with federal authorities. The Federal Trade Commission provides a centralized system for reporting identity theft and creating a personalized recovery plan. Your police report and case number will support your federal filing and strengthen your position with creditors and credit bureaus as you work through the recovery process.

File Your Report with the Federal Trade Commission, Serving South Carolina, including Greenville, Columbia and Charleston

Create Your FTC Account and Start the Intake Process

After you have your police report and case number in hand, filing with the Federal Trade Commission transforms your scattered documentation into an official recovery roadmap. Head to IdentityTheft.gov and create an account using your email address and a strong password. The FTC’s system walks you through a structured intake process where you answer questions about what happened, which accounts were compromised, and what fraudulent activity occurred. This is not busywork-the FTC processes roughly 2.6 million identity theft reports annually according to their Consumer Sentinel Network, so their system is built specifically to handle the volume and complexity of cases like yours.

Document Every Fraudulent Account and Transaction

When you input your information, be exact about dates, account names, and the dollar amounts involved. The FTC uses this data to identify patterns and trends in fraud that help law enforcement prioritize investigations. Include your police report number during this process; the FTC links federal reports to local law enforcement records, which strengthens any investigation and gives your case more visibility. List every fraudulent account you discovered, even if you have already contacted the bank or creditor directly. The FTC system captures the full scope of the theft, which matters when you later dispute accounts or request investigations from financial institutions.

Generate Your Personalized Recovery Plan

Once you complete the intake questionnaire, the FTC generates a personalized Identity Theft Report and a recovery plan tailored to your specific situation. This report becomes your most powerful tool when contacting banks, credit bureaus, and creditors because it carries federal weight-institutions take FTC documentation seriously when you dispute fraudulent accounts or request investigations. The recovery plan lists every action you need to take, in the order you should take them, with sample letters you can send to creditors and bureaus. These letters come directly from FTC templates and reference your FTC report number, which means you do not have to write persuasive language yourself; the official format does the work.

Protect and Reference Your FTC Documentation

Download and save your complete report as a PDF and keep multiple copies stored safely. You will reference this document repeatedly over the next several months as you contact financial institutions, place fraud alerts, and freeze your credit to prevent further damage. The FTC report is free, takes roughly 30 minutes to complete, and becomes the backbone of your entire recovery strategy. With your federal report in hand, you now have the documentation needed to move into the protection phase-placing fraud alerts and freezing your credit to prevent further damage.

Lock Down Your Credit Now, Serving South Carolina, including Greenville, Columbia and Charleston

Act Fast to Place Fraud Alerts

With your police report and FTC documentation complete, the window to prevent further damage closes quickly. Fraudsters move fast, and waiting even a week to freeze your credit gives them time to open new accounts in your name. Contact Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion immediately to place a fraud alert on all three credit files. A fraud alert lasts one year and tells lenders to verify your identity before opening new credit, which stops most new-account fraud in its tracks.

The process takes minutes per bureau. You only need to call one bureau and they notify the other two, though calling all three directly prevents anything from falling through cracks. Equifax handles fraud alerts at 800-525-6285, Experian at 888-397-3742, and TransUnion at 800-680-7289. After placing the alert, request written confirmation from each bureau showing your case number and alert effective date.

Implement a Credit Freeze for Maximum Protection

A fraud alert buys you time, but a credit freeze is your real defense. A freeze blocks access to your credit file entirely, preventing lenders from pulling your report to approve new accounts, new credit cards, or new loans. Unlike a fraud alert, a freeze requires thieves to unfreeze your file using a PIN they do not have, making it nearly impossible for them to open credit in your name.

Place a freeze with all three bureaus at the same time you place fraud alerts. You will receive a PIN for each bureau that you must keep safe-store these PINs separately from your passwords and important documents. When you need legitimate credit in the future, you thaw the freeze temporarily using your PIN, which takes 24 hours or less. The Federal Trade Commission recommends freezing your credit as the most effective prevention tool after identity theft is confirmed, and the freeze is free under federal law.

Monitor Your Credit Reports Consistently

Monitor your credit reports from AnnualCreditReport.com every 30 days for the next 12 months, checking for accounts you do not recognize, inquiries from lenders you did not contact, or address changes you did not authorize. Set phone reminders to review your reports on a schedule-this catches new fraud attempts before they cause serious damage. Most identity theft victims who freeze their credit and monitor reports catch reoccurring fraud within 60 days, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center, which means consistent vigilance pays off.

What Happens Next

After you file your police report and submit your FTC Identity Theft Report, law enforcement begins investigating the crime. Police contact financial institutions involved in the fraud and request records showing when accounts were opened, what identifying information was used, and transaction histories. This investigation takes time-typically several weeks to months depending on the complexity of your case and the number of institutions involved.

While law enforcement works, you must contact every financial institution where fraudulent accounts were opened. Call the fraud department at each bank or credit card company and provide your police report number and FTC report number, then request that they close fraudulent accounts, reverse unauthorized charges, and issue new account numbers for any legitimate accounts that were compromised. Keep detailed records of every call you make, including the date, time, person you spoke with, and what they promised to do. Follow up in writing using the sample letters from your FTC recovery plan, which reference your federal report and carry more weight than phone calls alone.

Recovery from identity theft is not quick-most victims spend 6 to 12 months resolving fraudulent accounts, disputing charges, and restoring their credit. You will need to dispute fraudulent items on your credit reports by sending written disputes to each bureau, referencing your FTC report and police report number. If you discover tax-related identity theft, file Form 14039 with the IRS and obtain an Identity Protection PIN to secure future tax filings. Contact Hays Cauley, P.C. if you need guidance navigating credit reporting disputes or identity theft recovery, and we help South Carolina consumers resolve identity theft and restore their financial standing.