Credit card charges for businesses can be considered a marketing expense. Marketing expenses are paid to convince people to do business with you. While some consumers just use credit cards routinely for transactions, others participate in incentive programs (like getting cash back).

Even for people who don't care about the credit card incentive programs, the feeling that the credit card company will take your side in a dispute is itself an incentive to do business with companies you don't know very well.

Consider a traveller shopping in a foreign city, or someone buying things from unknown third parties via Amazon, or buying an app from an unknown vendor in an app store. The customer gets certain reassurances from the credit card / Amazon / app store vendor that certain scams are less likely, though not eliminated. And if you do get a counterfeit you might be able to get a refund just because you say you deserve one.

Yes, ultimately the money comes from consumers, but the same is true of advertising and every other business expense. As a consumer you can often get a discount if you shop places with low overhead and pay with cash, but with perhaps somewhat less assurance that you're not getting ripped off.

Fraud prevention isn't free. The police do some of it, but maybe you want more protection than that?