diff --git a/sys/dev/usb/usb_device.c b/sys/dev/usb/usb_device.c
index df9fea60eaa6..30336a13dac0 100644
--- a/sys/dev/usb/usb_device.c
+++ b/sys/dev/usb/usb_device.c
@@ -1774,7 +1774,9 @@ usb_alloc_device(device_t parent_dev, struct usb_bus *bus,
 
 	scratch_ptr = udev->scratch.data;
 
-	if (udev->ddesc.iManufacturer ||
+	if (udev->flags.no_strings) {
+		err = USB_ERR_INVAL;
+	} else if (udev->ddesc.iManufacturer ||
 	    udev->ddesc.iProduct ||
 	    udev->ddesc.iSerialNumber) {
 		/* read out the language ID string */