diff --git a/pkg/registry/apis/datasource/converter.go b/pkg/registry/apis/datasource/converter.go
index 7719dcee2d6..1b1072cb570 100644
--- a/pkg/registry/apis/datasource/converter.go
+++ b/pkg/registry/apis/datasource/converter.go
@@ -88,6 +88,9 @@ func ToInlineSecureValues(dsType string, dsUID string, keys iter.Seq[string]) co
 			Name: "ds-" + n[0:10], // predictable name for dual writing
 		}
 	}
+	if len(values) == 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
 	return values
 }