diff --git a/util/cbfstool/cbfs-mkstage.c b/util/cbfstool/cbfs-mkstage.c
index 6e8daef..2f81da07 100644
--- a/util/cbfstool/cbfs-mkstage.c
+++ b/util/cbfstool/cbfs-mkstage.c
@@ -126,6 +126,11 @@
 		data_start = *location;
 	}
 
+	if (data_end <= data_start) {
+		fprintf(stderr, "E: data ends before it starts. Make sure the ELF file is correct and resides in ROM space.\n");
+		exit(1);
+	}
+
 	/* allocate an intermediate buffer for the data */
 	buffer = calloc(data_end - data_start, 1);