Excuse my blatant asking but is there any consumer protection in US and CA?

Like this:

Under EU rules, a seller must repair, replace, or give you a full or partial refund if something you buy turns out to be faulty or doesn’t look or work as advertised. You always have the right to a minimum 2-year guarantee, at no cost. However, national rules in your country may give you extra protection.
You can return any purchase within 14 days without justification…

https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/consumers/shopping/guarantees-returns/index_en.htm

This actually pretty old law served me well as 14d are usually enough to test a drive quite thoroughly (including badblocks).

Netflixer?

…but I’d rather call them idiots: Usually those people are just too dumb to backup anything themselves (with very few exceptions).

German proverb applies here:

Selber schuld.

Not unsimilar to Schadenfreude and often accompanied by shrugging and even laughter…

​

PS: Sorry for your loss, though <3 At least you learned something more valuable :)