diff --git a/pom.xml b/pom.xml
index 4d9c798..a0716dd 100644
--- a/pom.xml
+++ b/pom.xml
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
     <parent>
         <groupId>org.jenkins-ci.plugins</groupId>
         <artifactId>plugin</artifactId>
-        <version>4.76</version>
+        <version>4.77</version>
         <relativePath />
     </parent>
 
diff --git a/src/main/java/hudson/plugins/im/IMConnectionProvider.java b/src/main/java/hudson/plugins/im/IMConnectionProvider.java
index a058be1..1be1934 100644
--- a/src/main/java/hudson/plugins/im/IMConnectionProvider.java
+++ b/src/main/java/hudson/plugins/im/IMConnectionProvider.java
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 package hudson.plugins.im;
 
+import edu.umd.cs.findbugs.annotations.SuppressFBWarnings;
 import hudson.model.User;
 import hudson.plugins.im.tools.ExceptionHelper;
 import java.util.concurrent.Semaphore;
@@ -125,6 +126,12 @@ public Authentication getAuthentication() {
                     return authentication;
                 }
 
+                // New spotbugs UWF_FIELD_NOT_INITIALIZED_IN_CONSTRUCTOR
+                // just can't be quiesced, so duplicating the sanity-check here
+                if (descriptor == null || descriptor.getHudsonUserName() == null) {
+                    return null;
+                }
+
                 User u = User.get(descriptor.getHudsonUserName());
 
                 return u.impersonate();