diff --git a/lib/roken/base32.c b/lib/roken/base32.c
index d2611f80e..67d02c519 100644
--- a/lib/roken/base32.c
+++ b/lib/roken/base32.c
@@ -298,7 +298,7 @@ main(int argc, char **argv)
         if (fwrite(d, ret, 1, stdout) != 1)
             err(1, "Could not write decoded data");
         free(d);
-    } else {
+    } else if (buf) { /* buf can be NULL if we read from an empty file */
         char *e;
 
         if ((ret = rk_base32_encode(buf, buflen, &e, flags)) < 0)