diff --git a/pkg/kube.py b/pkg/kube.py
index fd79cfd..251a335 100644
--- a/pkg/kube.py
+++ b/pkg/kube.py
@@ -513,7 +513,7 @@ def create_userapp(username, userapp, spec_map):
                 configmap_data[cfg['name']] = cfg['value'] if 'value' in cfg else ''
             if ('isPassword' in cfg and cfg['isPassword']) and \
                     ('canOverride' in cfg and cfg['canOverride']) and \
-                    not cfg['value']:
+                    ('value' not in cfg or not cfg['value']):
                 # generate password if none is provided
                 configmap_data[cfg['name']] = generate_random_password()
             else: