diff --git a/handlers/badges.go b/handlers/badges.go
index 1bb647e..62602ab 100644
--- a/handlers/badges.go
+++ b/handlers/badges.go
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import (
 	"fmt"
 	"net/http"
 	"strconv"
+	"strings"
 	"time"
 
 	svg "github.com/ajstarks/svgo"
@@ -120,6 +121,11 @@ func (handler *BadgesHandler) UpdateBadgeValue(c *gin.Context) {
 		return
 	}
 
+	if request.Value == "" || strings.TrimSpace(request.Value) == "" {
+		c.JSON(http.StatusBadRequest, gin.H{"error": "invalid request"})
+		return
+	}
+
 	queryName := c.Param("name")
 
 	badge, err := handler.queryBadgeFromDB(queryName)