diff --git a/src/libopensc/card.c b/src/libopensc/card.c
index ca327a29..69e9ce54 100644
--- a/src/libopensc/card.c
+++ b/src/libopensc/card.c
@@ -405,7 +405,7 @@ int sc_delete_file(sc_card_t *card, const sc_path_t *path)
 int sc_read_binary(sc_card_t *card, unsigned int idx,
 		   unsigned char *buf, size_t count, unsigned long flags)
 {
-	size_t max_le = card->max_recv_size;
+	size_t max_le = card->max_recv_size > 0 ? card->max_recv_size : 256;
 	int r;
 
 	assert(card != NULL && card->ops != NULL && buf != NULL);