diff --git a/drivers/tty/tty_io.c b/drivers/tty/tty_io.c
index 5e5da9acaf0a9..252eef2c32f94 100644
--- a/drivers/tty/tty_io.c
+++ b/drivers/tty/tty_io.c
@@ -408,7 +408,7 @@ struct tty_driver *tty_find_polling_driver(char *name, int *line)
 	mutex_lock(&tty_mutex);
 	/* Search through the tty devices to look for a match */
 	list_for_each_entry(p, &tty_drivers, tty_drivers) {
-		if (strncmp(name, p->name, len) != 0)
+		if (!len || strncmp(name, p->name, len) != 0)
 			continue;
 		stp = str;
 		if (*stp == ',')