diff --git a/libs/esl/fs_cli.c b/libs/esl/fs_cli.c
index 4d63f40d63..7cc0201366 100644
--- a/libs/esl/fs_cli.c
+++ b/libs/esl/fs_cli.c
@@ -1159,8 +1159,8 @@ int main(int argc, char *argv[])
 	int argv_quiet = 0;
 	int loops = 2, reconnect = 0, timeout = 0;
 
-	if (!strncasecmp("screen", term, 6) ||
-		!strncasecmp("vt100", term, 5)) {
+	if (term && (!strncasecmp("screen", term, 6) ||
+		!strncasecmp("vt100", term, 5))) {
 		feature_level = 1;
 	} else {
 		feature_level = 0;
@@ -1472,4 +1472,4 @@ int main(int argc, char *argv[])
  * End:
  * For VIM:
  * vim:set softtabstop=4 shiftwidth=4 tabstop=4:
- */
+ */
\ No newline at end of file