--- a/drivers/net/wireless/ath/ath9k/wmi.c
+++ b/drivers/net/wireless/ath/ath9k/wmi.c
@@ -221,6 +221,9 @@ static void ath9k_wmi_ctrl_rx(void *priv, struct sk_buff *skb,
 	if (unlikely(wmi->stopped))
 		goto free_skb;
 
+	if (unlikely(skb->len < sizeof(struct wmi_cmd_hdr)))
+		goto free_skb;
+
 	hdr = (struct wmi_cmd_hdr *) skb->data;
 	cmd_id = be16_to_cpu(hdr->command_id);
 
@@ -308,8 +311,11 @@ int ath9k_wmi_cmd(struct wmi *wmi, enum wmi_cmd_id cmd_id,
 	unsigned long time_left;
 	int ret = 0;
 
-	if (ah->ah_flags & AH_UNPLUGGED)
-		return 0;
+	if (ah->ah_flags & AH_UNPLUGGED) {
+		ath_dbg(common, WMI, "Device unplugged for WMI command: %s\n",
+			wmi_cmd_to_name(cmd_id));
+		return -ENODEV;
+	}
 
 	skb = alloc_skb(headroom + cmd_len, GFP_ATOMIC);
 	if (!skb)