diff --git a/src/nm-policy.c b/src/nm-policy.c
index 811d5bf6fe..dbfa0b52b0 100644
--- a/src/nm-policy.c
+++ b/src/nm-policy.c
@@ -139,7 +139,7 @@ _dns_manager_set_ip_config (NMDnsManager *dns_manager,
                             NMDnsIPConfigType ip_config_type,
                             NMDevice *device)
 {
-	if (nm_device_sys_iface_state_is_external (device)) {
+	if (device && nm_device_sys_iface_state_is_external (device)) {
 		nm_dns_manager_set_ip_config (dns_manager, ip_config, NM_DNS_IP_CONFIG_TYPE_REMOVED);
 		return;
 	}