diff --git a/src/org/thoughtcrime/securesms/util/BitmapUtil.java b/src/org/thoughtcrime/securesms/util/BitmapUtil.java
index 8a35ca0972..bf13ad851d 100644
--- a/src/org/thoughtcrime/securesms/util/BitmapUtil.java
+++ b/src/org/thoughtcrime/securesms/util/BitmapUtil.java
@@ -59,6 +59,10 @@ public class BitmapUtil {
                                                       constraints.getImageMaxHeight(context),
                                                       DecodeFormat.PREFER_RGB_565);
 
+    if (scaledBitmap == null) {
+      throw new BitmapDecodingException("Unable to decode image");
+    }
+    
     try {
       do {
         ByteArrayOutputStream baos = new ByteArrayOutputStream();