Even with strong consumer protections, the bad actors are often based overseas. There is little to no incentive for the Chinese government to inhibit fraud taking place in the US or Europe.

> Even with strong consumer protections, the bad actors are often based overseas.

Nope. There aren't many countries that allow foreigners who've never set foot in their country to sell product there without local representation.

Alibaba etc work just fine through the postal system without a local presence.

(Mind you, using them is pretty much explicitly waiving your protection in exchange for much lower prices)