diff --git a/apps/messagegui/ChangeLog b/apps/messagegui/ChangeLog
index d849e9b6fd..48d5234fe9 100644
--- a/apps/messagegui/ChangeLog
+++ b/apps/messagegui/ChangeLog
@@ -117,4 +117,5 @@
       Remove workaround for 2v10 (>3 years ago) - assume everyone is on never firmware now
 0.86: Default to showing message scroller (with title, bigger icon)
 0.87: Make choosing of font size more repeatable
-0.88: Adjust padding calculation so messages are spaced out properly even when using international fonts
\ No newline at end of file
+0.88: Adjust padding calculation so messages are spaced out properly even when using international fonts
+0.89: Fix bugs related to empty titles and bodies
diff --git a/apps/messagegui/app.js b/apps/messagegui/app.js
index 7dcfec866d..5b30957304 100644
--- a/apps/messagegui/app.js
+++ b/apps/messagegui/app.js
@@ -361,12 +361,12 @@ function showMessage(msgid, persist) {
   active = "message";
   // Normal text message display
   let src=msg.src||/*LANG*/"Message", srcFont = fontSmall;
-  let title=msg.title, titleFont = fontLarge, lines;
+  let title=msg.title||"", titleFont = fontLarge, lines=[];
   let body=msg.body, bodyFont = fontLarge;
   // If no body, use the title text instead...
-  if (body===undefined) {
+  if (!body) {
     body = title;
-    title = undefined;
+    title = "";
   }
   if (g.setFont(srcFont).stringWidth(src) > g.getWidth()-52)
     srcFont = "4x6";
@@ -392,6 +392,8 @@ function showMessage(msgid, persist) {
     }
     lines = g.setFont(bodyFont).wrapString(body, w);
   }
+  // By this point, `title` must be a string and `lines` must be an array of strings.
+  // Either or both can be empty, but neither can be `undefined` (#3969).
   let negHandler,posHandler,rowLeftDraw,rowRightDraw;
   if (msg.negative) {
     negHandler = ()=>{
diff --git a/apps/messagegui/metadata.json b/apps/messagegui/metadata.json
index db54edb7e8..8ef38bd063 100644
--- a/apps/messagegui/metadata.json
+++ b/apps/messagegui/metadata.json
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
   "id": "messagegui",
   "name": "Message UI",
   "shortName": "Messages",
-  "version": "0.88",
+  "version": "0.89",
   "description": "Default app to display notifications from iOS and Gadgetbridge/Android",
   "icon": "app.png",
   "type": "app",