Employers seek to protect their companies and their employees. Employers who hire applicants without conducting background checks can be held, and have been held, financially liable for the actions of that employee. Court awards have cost employers millions of dollars.
Employers also seek to protect company assets.
Sometimes background checks are mandated by law. Criminal and credit checks are most often required. Penalties for non-compliance are usually monetary fines, but occasionally include jail sentences as well. Background checks add an important piece to the applicant's total information profile. The results serve to confirm impressions from interviews and assessments from testing.