1 files changed, 5 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/magic.py b/magic.py
index a97e929..8637c95 100644
--- a/magic.py
+++ b/magic.py
@@ -72,6 +72,11 @@ class Magic:
         """
         with self.lock:
             try:
+                # if we're on python3, convert buf to bytes
+                # otherwise this string is passed as wchar*
+                # which is not what libmagic expects
+                if type(buf) == str and str != bytes:
+                   buf = buf.encode('utf-8', errors='replace')
                 return maybe_decode(magic_buffer(self.cookie, buf))
             except MagicException as e:
                 return self._handle509Bug(e)