diff --git a/pyftdi/usbtools.py b/pyftdi/usbtools.py
index 15b8bd61..54fae0f5 100644
--- a/pyftdi/usbtools.py
+++ b/pyftdi/usbtools.py
@@ -543,8 +543,9 @@ def get_string(cls, device: UsbDevice, stridx: int) -> str:
             if cls.UsbApi == 2:
                 return usb_get_string(device, stridx)
             return usb_get_string(device, 64, stridx)
-        except UnicodeDecodeError:
+        except (UnicodeDecodeError, ValueError):
             # do not abort if EEPROM data is somewhat incoherent
+            # or if device has no langid or no permission
             return ''
 
     @classmethod