diff --git a/mycli/sqlexecute.py b/mycli/sqlexecute.py
index 4562354f..eea8e5e4 100644
--- a/mycli/sqlexecute.py
+++ b/mycli/sqlexecute.py
@@ -238,7 +238,7 @@ def connect(
             charset=charset or '',
             autocommit=True,
             client_flag=client_flag,
-            local_infile=local_infile,
+            local_infile=local_infile or False,
             conv=conv,
             ssl=ssl_context,  # type: ignore[arg-type]
             program_name="mycli",